Etanercept and methotrexate combination therapy

A.D. Bankhurst

ABSTRACT
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is a major proinflammatory cytokine in the rheumatoid joint. TNF activity can be neutralized by administration of a recombinant version of its soluble p75 TNF receptor linked to the Fc portion of human immunoglobulin IgG1 (etanercept). The present study examined the combination of etanercept with methotrexate (MTX) in a group of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who had persistent activity despite monotherapy with MTX. The etanercept-MTX group had a significantly better outcome than the placebo-MTX group using American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. At 6 months, 71% of the patients in the etanercept - MTX group had an ACR 20% response (versus 27% in the placebo-MTX group). In the etanercept-MTX group, 39% had an ACR 50% response (versus 3% in the placebo-MTX group), and 15% in the etanercept-MTX group versus 0% in the placebo-MTX group met the robust ACR 70% response. The present study indicates that etanercept is a novel and robust drug in combination with MTX for the treatment of RA.

Key words
Rheumatoid arthritis, etanercept, methotrexate, combination therapy, tumor necrosis factor.

Please address correspondence and reprint requests to: Arthur D. Bankhurst, MD, Professor of Internal Medicine, Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Chief, Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, 2211 Lomas Blvd. NE, ACC 5th Floor, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131-5271, USA.
e-mail: abankhurst@salud.unm.edu

Clin Exp Rheumatol 1999; 17 (Suppl. 18): S69 - S72.
© Copyright Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology 1999.