Effect of Golimumab in Participants With Active Axial Spondyloarthritis (P07642, MK-8259-006) (GO-AHEAD)

• ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01453725
• Recruitment Status: Completed
• First Posted: October 18, 2011
• Results First Posted: December 18, 2014
• Last Update Posted: February 6, 2019
• Sponsor: Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
• Collaborator: Johnson & Johnson
• Information provided by (Responsible Party): Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

Study Description

Brief Summary:

This two-part study was to evaluate the effect of golimumab (SCH 900259, MK-8259) in participants with active axial spondyloarthritis (axial SpA). In Part 1, participants were to receive golimumab 50 mg or matching placebo subcutaneous injections on Day 1 (Baseline) and at Weeks 4, 8, and 12. During Part 1 of the study, participants were to not know the identity of the injection. In the Part 2 extension, all participants were to receive golimumab 50 mg subcutaneous injections beginning on Week 16 and then every 4 weeks up to Week 48. In Part 2, the participants were to be told they were receiving active study drug. The primary hypothesis of this study was that treatment with golimumab 50 mg every 4 weeks is superior to placebo as measured by the proportion of participants achieving an Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis (ASAS) 20 response at Week 16.

Condition or disease	Intervention/treatment	Phase
Spondylitis, Ankylosing	Biological: Golimumab; Biological: Placebo	Phase 3

Study Design

• Study Type: Interventional (Clinical Trial)
• Actual Enrollment: 198 participants
• Allocation: Randomized
• Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Double (Participant, Investigator)
• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Official Title: A Multicenter, Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Study of the Effect of Golimumab Administered Subcutaneously in Subjects With Active Axial Spondyloarthritis (Protocol No. P07642, Also Known as MK-8259-006-02).
• Actual Study Start Date: February 13, 2012
• Actual Primary Completion Date: March 11, 2014
• Actual Study Completion Date: January 15, 2015

Arms and Interventions

Arm	Intervention/treatment
Experimental: Golimumab→Golimumab; In Part 1, participants receive golimumab 50 mg, administered subcutaneously (SC) every 4 weeks for up to 12 weeks (16 weeks of treatment). In Part 2, participants receive golimumab 50 mg, administered SC every 4 weeks for up to 28 weeks (32 weeks of treatment). (Combined total of up to 48 weeks treatment with golimumab.)	Biological: Golimumab; Golimumab 50 mg SC injection every 4 weeks
Placebo Comparator: Placebo→Golimumab; In Part 1, participants receive placebo, administered SC every 4 weeks for up to 12 weeks (16 weeks of treatment). In Part 2, participants receive golimumab 50 mg, administered SC every 4 weeks for up to 28 weeks (32 weeks of treatment). (Combined total of up to 32 weeks treatment with golimumab.)	Biological: Golimumab; Golimumab 50 mg SC injection every 4 weeks; Biological: Placebo; Placebo SC injection every 4 weeks

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures :

1. Percentage of Participants Achieving an Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis (ASAS) 20 Response at Week 16 [ Time Frame: Week 16 ]
   The ASAS consists of 4 domains: participant global assessment, total back pain, function (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index [BASFI]), and inflammation (mean of questions 5 and 6 of Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index [BASDAI]). Each domain is measured on a 100-mm visual analog scale (VAS) from 0 mm=the very best situation to 100 mm=the very worst situation, with a higher score indicating more severe impairment. ASAS 20 is a 20% improvement in response (per the Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis International Working Group) defined as meeting 2 criteria: 1) An improvement of >=20% from Baseline and an absolute improvement from Baseline of >=10 mm in at least 3 of 4 domains, and 2) Absence of deterioration from Baseline (defined as a >=20% worsening and an absolute worsening of >=10 mm) in the potential remaining domain. The percentages of participants who achieved ASAS 20 were calculated.
2. Percentage of Participants Who Experienced at Least One Adverse Event (AE) [ Time Frame: Up to 16 weeks for Part 1: Week 16 through up to 60 weeks for Part 2 (Up to 12 weeks after last dose of study drug) ]
   An AE is any unfavorable and unintended sign (including an abnormal laboratory finding), symptom, or disease temporally associated with the use of the study drug, whether or not considered related to the study drug. The percentages of participants who experienced at least one AE were calculated for each part of the study.
3. Percentage of Participants Who Discontinued Study Drug Due to an AE [ Time Frame: Up to 16 weeks for Part 1; Week 16 through up to 48 weeks for Part 2 ]
   An AE is any unfavorable and unintended sign (including an abnormal laboratory finding), symptom, or disease temporally associated with the use of the study drug, whether or not considered related to the study drug. The percentages of participants who discontinued study drug due to an AE were calculated for each part of the study. Participants may have discontinued study drug without discontinuing from the study.

Secondary Outcome Measures :

1. Percentage of Participants Achieving an Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis (ASAS) 40 Response at Week 16 [ Time Frame: Week 16 ]
   The ASAS consists of 4 domains: participant global assessment, total back pain, function (BASFI), and inflammation (mean of questions 5 and 6 of BASDAI). Each domain is measured on a 100-mm VAS from 0 mm=the very best situation to 100 mm=the very worst situation, with a higher score indicating more severe impairment. ASAS 40 is a 40% improvement in response (per the Assessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis International Working Group) defined as meeting 2 criteria: 1) An improvement of >=40% from Baseline and an absolute improvement from Baseline of >=20 mm in at least 3 of 4 domains, and 2) Absence of deterioration from Baseline (defined as a >=0% worsening and an absolute worsening of >=0 mm) in the potential remaining domain. The percentages of participants who achieved ASAS 40 were calculated.
2. Percentage of Participants Achieving Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) 50 at Week 16 [ Time Frame: Week 16 ]
   The BASDAI is a summary of 6 participant-assessed 100-mm VAS for a) Fatigue, b) Spinal pain (overall), c) Peripheral arthritis, d) Enthesitis, e) Qualitative morning stiffness (intensity) and f) Quantitative morning stiffness (duration). Each VAS is measured as 0=none to 100=very severe, with a higher score indicating more severe symptoms. The BASDAI score is calculated as 0.2 time (a+b+c+d+[0.5 times e+f]) and can range from 0 to 100. The BASDAI 50 is defined as improvement by at least 50% from Baseline in the BASDAI score. The percentages of participants who achieved BASDAI 50 were calculated.
3. Percentage of Participants Achieving ASAS Partial Remission at Week 16 [ Time Frame: Week 16 ]
   ASAS partial remission was defined as a VAS score of less than 20 mm in each of the 4 domains of ASAS 20: participant global assessment, pain (total back pain), function and inflammation. The percentages of participants who achieved ASAS partial remission were calculated.
4. Change From Baseline in Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada (SPARCC) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Sacroiliac (SI) Joints Score at Week 16 [ Time Frame: Baseline and Week 16 ]
   Participants underwent MRI of the SI joints, without contrast, at Screening and Week 16 to assess the presence or absence of active inflammation of the SI joints. Scoring was based on 6 consecutive MRI slices through the SI joint. Each slice was divided into 4 quadrants. Each of the 48 quadrants was scored with respect to the presence of inflammation (0=no, 1=yes), yielding a maximum score of 48. Each slice was also assessed for the presence of a lesion exhibiting either intense signal or a depth >=1 cm anywhere within the SI joint of the 6 slices (0=no, 1=yes), yielding a maximum score of 24. Total SI joint scores could range from 0 to 72, with a higher score indicating more signs of disease.

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 Years to 45 Years (Adult)
• Sexes Eligible for Study: All
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Active axial spondyloarthritis with disease duration ≤5 years, and chronic back pain of ≥3 month duration
• Have either an inadequate response to 30 days of optimal daily doses of at least one non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) or must be unable to receive a full 30 day maximal NSAID therapy because of intolerance, toxicity or contraindications to NSAIDs
• Females of child-bearing potential must use contraception
• No history of untreated latent or active tuberculosis

Exclusion Criteria:

• Fulfillment of modified New York criteria for ankylosing spondylitis
• Has ever received tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α targeted therapy or any biological agents
• Any systemic inflammatory condition other than spondyloarthritis
• Serious infection within 2 months
• Any known malignancy or a history of malignancy within the previous 5 years
• Has or had a substance abuse (drug or alcohol) problem within the previous 2 years

Contacts and Locations

Sponsors and Collaborators

Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

Johnson & Johnson

Investigators

• Study Director: Medical Director; Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

More Information

Study Data/Documents: CSR Synopsis 

Publications of Results:

Sieper J, van der Heijde D, Dougados M, Maksymowych WP, Scott BB, Boice JA, Berd Y, Bergman G, Curtis S, Tzontcheva A, Huyck S, Weng HH. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, sixteen-week study of subcutaneous golimumab in patients with active nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2015 Oct;67(10):2702-12. doi: 10.1002/art.39257.

Publications automatically indexed to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT Number):

van der Heijde D, Dougados M, Maksymowych WP, Bergman G, Curtis SP, Tzontcheva A, Huyck S, Philip G, Sieper J. Long-term tolerability and efficacy of golimumab in active non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis: results from open-label extension. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2022 Feb 2;61(2):617-627. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/keab346.

• Responsible Party: Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
• ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01453725
• Other Study ID Numbers: P07642; MK-8259-006 ( Other Identifier: Merck Study Number ); 2011-000311-34 ( EudraCT Number )
• First Posted: October 18, 2011
• Results First Posted: December 18, 2014
• Last Update Posted: February 6, 2019
• Last Verified: January 2019

Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement:

• Plan to Share IPD: Yes
• Plan Description: http://engagezone.msd.com/doc/ProcedureAccessClinicalTrialData.pdf
• URL: http://engagezone.msd.com/ds_documentation.php

Additional relevant MeSH terms:

Spondylitis; Spondylarthritis; Axial Spondyloarthritis; Spondylitis, Ankylosing; Bone Diseases, Infectious; Infections; Bone Diseases; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Spinal Diseases; Arthritis; Joint Diseases; Spondylarthropathies; Ankylosis; Golimumab; Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Immunosuppressive Agents; Immunologic Factors; Physiological Effects of Drugs