Very low doses of rituximab in autoimmune hemolytic anemia-an open-label, phase II pilot trial.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Although rituximab is approved for several autoimmune diseases, no formal dose finding studies have been conducted. The amount of CD20+ cells differs significantly between autoimmune diseases and B-cell malignancies. Hence, dose requirements of anti-CD20 therapies may differ accordingly.

Methods

We conducted a phase II pilot trial investigating the effects and safety of very low doses of rituximab, i.e., 5 mg/m² every 3 weeks, 20 mg every 4 weeks, 50 mg every 3 months (n = 3 each) and 100 mg every 3 months (n = 1) in patients with autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) to effectively suppress CD20⁺ cell counts. Doses were increased if circulating CD20⁺ cell depletion was insufficient (i.e., <95% reduction from baseline)

SUBMITTER: Moser MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11695359 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature