A Twelve-month, Multicenter, Open-label, Randomized Study of the Safety, Tolerability and Efficacy of Everolimus With Basiliximab, Corticosteroids and Two Different Exposure Levels of Tacrolimus in de Novo Renal Transplant Recipients

Novartis

Status and phase: Completed; Phase 4

Conditions: Renal Transplantation

Treatments: Drug: Corticosteroids; Drug: Basiliximab; Drug: Tacrolimus; Drug: Everolimus (RAD001)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Industry

Identifiers

NCT00369161

CRAD001A2426

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study is designed to evaluate whether tacrolimus dose reduction in de novo renal recipients receiving everolimus can preserve renal function while maintaining efficacy.

Enrollment: 228 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 65 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria

• Male or female of 18-65 years old
• Patient who has received a primary kidney transplant from a cadaveric, living unrelated or non-human leucocyte antigen (HLA) identical living related donor
• Recipient of a kidney with a cold ischemia time (CIT) < 30 hours
• Recipient of a kidney from a donor 10-65 years old
• Patient able to receive the first dose of tacrolimus within 24 hours from graft reperfusion
• Female capable of becoming pregnant must have a negative pregnancy test and is required to practice a medically approved method of birth control for the duration of the study and for a period of three months following discontinuation of investigational drug
• Patient willing and capable of giving written informed consent for study participation and able to participate in the study for 12 months

Exclusion criteria

• Patient who has previously received an organ transplant
• Recipient of multiple organ transplants
• Recipient of a kidney transplant from a non heart-beating donor
• Recipient of donor specific transfusions
• Recipient of A-B-O incompatible transplant or T-cell cross-match positive transplant
• Patient with current Panel Reactive Antibodies (PRA) level ≥ 50%
• Recipient of a kidney from a donor who tests positive for hepatitis B surface antigen or hepatitis C antibodies
• Patient who is human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive
• Patient who has a positive hepatitis C serology or who is hepatitis B surface antigen positive with evidence of liver injury as indicated by aspartate aminotransferase (AST)/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels ≥2.5 times upper limit of normal (UNL). Viral serology results obtained within 6 months prior to the administration of the first dose of Certican™ are acceptable
• Patient with severe hypercholesterolemia (350 mg/dL, 9.1 mmoL/dL) or hypertriglyceridemia ( 500 mg/dL, 5.6 mmoL/L)
• Patient with white blood cell (WBC) count 3,000/mm3 or with platelet count 75,000/mm3
• Patient with any severe allergy requiring acute (within 4 weeks of baseline) or chronic treatment, or with hypersensitivity to drugs similar to Certican (e.g., macrolides)
• Patient who has been treated with an immunosuppressive drug or an investigational drug within 4 weeks prior to the administration of the first dose of Certican
• Patient with uncontrolled infection
• Patient with any surgical or medical condition, other than the current transplant, which in the opinion of the investigator, precludes enrollment in this trial
• Patient with a known malignancy or a history of malignancy within last 5 years other than successfully treated localized basal or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin
• Abnormal physical or laboratory findings of clinical significance within 2 weeks prior to the administration of the first dose of Certican™ which at investigator's discretion would interfere with the objectives of the study
• Breast feeding women
• Patient with symptoms of significant somatic or mental illness or with unresolved history of drug or alcohol abuse
• Patient unable to cooperate or communicate with the investigator

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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228 participants in 2 patient groups

Very low dose tacrolimus

Active Comparator group

Description:

The first dose of everolimus was to be administered not later than 24 hours after transplantation with a starting dose of 1.5 mg bis in diem/twice a day (b.i.d.) thereafter adjusted to maintain the trough blood levels between 3 and 8 ng/ml. Tacrolimus was to be initiated within 24 hours after reperfusion of the graft with a starting dose of 0.1 mg/kg/day thereafter adjusted to maintain the trough blood levels between 4 and 7 ng/ml. Up to months three all patients received the same treatment and after three months patients in this arm received tacrolimus to reach a trough blood level between 1.5 and 3 ng/ml. All patients received two doses of 20 mg basiliximab, administered as an intravenous bolus injection. The first dose was given on the day of transplantation, with the second dose being administered on the fourth day post-transplant. Intravenous (i.v.) prednisone (or equivalent) was given pre- or intra-operatively according to center practice.

Treatment:

Drug: Corticosteroids

Drug: Basiliximab

Drug: Tacrolimus

Drug: Everolimus (RAD001)

Low dose tacrolimus

Active Comparator group

Description:

The first dose of everolimus was to be administered not later than 24 hours after transplantation with a starting dose of 1.5 mg bis in diem/twice a day (b.i.d.) thereafter adjusted to maintain the trough blood levels between 3 and 8 ng/ml. Tacrolimus was to be initiated within 24 hours after reperfusion of the graft with a starting dose of 0.1 mg/kg/day thereafter adjusted to maintain the trough blood levels between 4 and 7 ng/ml. Up to months three all patients received the same treatment and after three months patients in this arm received tacrolimus to reach a trough blood level between 4 and 7 ng/ml. All patients received two doses of 20 mg basiliximab, administered as an intravenous bolus injection. The first dose was given on the day of transplantation, with the second dose being administered on the fourth day post-transplant. Intravenous (i.v.) prednisone (or equivalent) was given pre- or intra-operatively according to center practice.

Treatment:

Drug: Corticosteroids

Drug: Basiliximab

Drug: Tacrolimus

Drug: Everolimus (RAD001)