CNS Sarcoidosis and Acthar Gel

CNS Sarcoidosis Clinical Trial

Official title:

Clinical Biomarkers of Disease Activity and Treatment Responses in Patients With CNS Sarcoidosis Treated With H.P. Acthar Gel

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT02298491
• Other study ID #: HP-00062490
• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 4
• Start date: May 2016
• Est. completion date: November 2020

Study information

• Verified date: March 2021
• Source: University of Maryland, Baltimore
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The purpose of this study is to see if treatment with H.P. Acthar® Gel will result in the improvement and long-term stabilization of clinical and radiographic abnormalities that occur in patients with CNS sarcoidosis. In addition, it will also look at whether treatment will be also associated with improvement in measures of quality of life. The treatment of CNS sarcoidosis involves the use of either corticosteroids such as prednisone or potent immunosuppressive agents such as methotrexate, both which can induce severe long term side effects. The adverse effects of steroids may be avoided by treatment with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which is available for patient use as H.P. Acthar® Gel. The efficacies of H.P. Acthar® Gel in the treatment of CNS sarcoidosis and the impact on quality of life have not been previously studied. In addition, little is known regarding the expression of immune markers in CNS sarcoidosis and the association of such markers with disease activity and response to treatment.

Description:

Sarcoidosis is a chronic and frequently progressive systemic disease that affects the central nervous system (CNS) in approximately 5% of patients. The hallmark of the disease is the development of chronic inflammation with formation of non-caseating granulomas that can involve the brain parenchyma and meninges and appear as contrast-enhancing mass lesions on magnetic resonance imaging. The granulomas are primarily comprised of proinflammatory T cells (Th1 cells and Th17 cells) and macrophages which accumulate during the early stages of granuloma formation. The inflammation that is generated by these cells is modulated by anti-inflammatory responses mediated by Th2 cells and regulatory T (Treg) cells that later appear and populate the outer regions of the granuloma. The presence of Treg cells are of particular interest since these cell are also detected in high numbers in peripheral blood and the immune suppression that results may underlie the occurrence of anergy in patients with the disease. The treatment of CNS sarcoidosis involves the use of either corticosteroids or potent immunosuppressive agents, both which can induce severe long-term side effects. The adverse effects of steroids may be avoided by treatment with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which is available for patient use as H.P. Acthar® Gel. The efficacy of H.P. Acthar® Gel in the treatment of CNS sarcoidosis and the impact on quality of life have not been previously examined. In addition, little is known regarding the expression of immune markers in CNS sarcoidosis and the association of such markers with disease activity and response to treatment. These issues, therefore, will be explored in the context of this proposal.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 4
• Est. completion date: November 2020
• Est. primary completion date: November 2020
• Accepts healthy volunteers: No
• Gender: All
• Age group: N/A and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• A highly probable diagnosis of sarcoidosis, as determined using the World Association for Sarcoidosis and Other Granulomatous Disorders (WASOG) Sarcoidosis Organ Assessment Instrument (Judson et al., 2014), with involvement not limited to the central nervous system.

• At the time of enrollment, a history of clinical deterioration based on the development of new symptoms or worsening previously present symptoms with confirmation by clinical examination and objective clinical testing.

• If on steroids, on a stable dose of the medication for at least 3 months.

Exclusion Criteria:

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• CNS Sarcoidosis
• Sarcoidosis

Intervention

Drug:
• H.P. Acthar Gel
80 IU subcutaneously daily for 10 days then followed by 80 IU subcutaneously three times per week through Month 12

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	University of Maryland, Baltimore	Baltimore	Maryland

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
University of Maryland, Baltimore	Mallinckrodt

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

References & Publications (11)

Agostini C, Meneghin A, Semenzato G. T-lymphocytes and cytokines in sarcoidosis. Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2002 Sep;8(5):435-40. Review. — View Citation

Arnason BG, Berkovich R, Catania A, Lisak RP, Zaidi M. Mechanisms of action of adrenocorticotropic hormone and other melanocortins relevant to the clinical management of patients with multiple sclerosis. Mult Scler. 2013 Feb;19(2):130-6. doi: 10.1177/1352458512458844. Epub 2012 Oct 3. Review. — View Citation

Co DO, Hogan LH, Il-Kim S, Sandor M. T cell contributions to the different phases of granuloma formation. Immunol Lett. 2004 Mar 29;92(1-2):135-42. Review. — View Citation

Judson MA, Costabel U, Drent M, Wells A, Maier L, Koth L, Shigemitsu H, Culver DA, Gelfand J, Valeyre D, Sweiss N, Crouser E, Morgenthau AS, Lower EE, Azuma A, Ishihara M, Morimoto S, Tetsuo Yamaguchi T, Shijubo N, Grutters JC, Rosenbach M, Li HP, Rottoli P, Inoue Y, Prasse A, Baughman RP, Organ Assessment Instrument Investigators TW. The WASOG Sarcoidosis Organ Assessment Instrument: An update of a previous clinical tool. Sarcoidosis Vasc Diffuse Lung Dis. 2014 Apr 18;31(1):19-27. — View Citation

Miller DH, Kendall BE, Barter S, Johnson G, MacManus DG, Logsdail SJ, Ormerod IE, McDonald WI. Magnetic resonance imaging in central nervous system sarcoidosis. Neurology. 1988 Mar;38(3):378-83. — View Citation

Miyara M, Amoura Z, Parizot C, Badoual C, Dorgham K, Trad S, Kambouchner M, Valeyre D, Chapelon-Abric C, Debré P, Piette JC, Gorochov G. The immune paradox of sarcoidosis and regulatory T cells. J Exp Med. 2006 Feb 20;203(2):359-70. Epub 2006 Jan 23. Erratum in: J Exp Med. 2006 Feb 20;203(2):477. — View Citation

Moller DR. Treatment of sarcoidosis -- from a basic science point of view. J Intern Med. 2003 Jan;253(1):31-40. Review. — View Citation

Royal W 3rd, Mia Y, Li H, Naunton K. Peripheral blood regulatory T cell measurements correlate with serum vitamin D levels in patients with multiple sclerosis. J Neuroimmunol. 2009 Aug 18;213(1-2):135-41. doi: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2009.05.012. Epub 2009 Jun 17. — View Citation

Shi C, Pamer EG. Monocyte recruitment during infection and inflammation. Nat Rev Immunol. 2011 Oct 10;11(11):762-74. doi: 10.1038/nri3070. Review. — View Citation

Stern BJ, Aksamit A, Clifford D, Scott TF; Neurosarcoidosis Study Group. Neurologic presentations of sarcoidosis. Neurol Clin. 2010 Feb;28(1):185-98. doi: 10.1016/j.ncl.2009.09.012. — View Citation

Stern BJ, Krumholz A, Johns C, Scott P, Nissim J. Sarcoidosis and its neurological manifestations. Arch Neurol. 1985 Sep;42(9):909-17. Review. — View Citation

* Note: There are 11 references in all — Click here to view all references

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Other	Serum and Cerebrospinal Fluid Immune Markers	Change in levels of serum and cerebrospinal fluid immune markers at 4 weeks, 6 months and 12 months versus baseline	4 weeks, 6 months and 12 months
Primary	Total Number of Lesions	Total number of lesions assessed at 1 year	1 year
Secondary	Quality of Life Measures	Change in Patient Determined Disease Steps (PDDS), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), Symbol-Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Short Form -36 Health Survey (SF-36), Work Productivity and Activities Impairment -General Health (WPAI-GH) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) at 4 weeks, 6 months and 12 months relative to baseline	4 weeks, 6 months and 12 months
Secondary	Quality of Life Measure	Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication (TSQM) scores at 4 weeks and change in TSQM scores at 6 months and 12 months versus baseline	6 months and 12 months