Safety of rituximab in the treatment of B cell malignancies implications for rheumatoid arthritis 英文参考文献.docVIP

Arthritis Research Therapy Vol 5 Suppl 4 Hainsworth Review Safety of rituximab in the treatment of B cell malignancies: implications for rheumatoid arthritis John D Hainsworth Sarah Cannon Cancer Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA Correspondence: John D Hainsworth (e-mail: jhainsworth@) Received: 29 Aug 2003 Accepted: 6 Oct 2003 Published: 2 Dec 2003 Arthritis Res Ther 2003, 5(Suppl 4):S12-S16 (DOI 10.1186/ar1008) ? 2003 BioMed Central Ltd (Print ISSN 1478-6354; Online ISSN 1478-6362) Abstract The chimeric anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody rituximab has been used extensively in the treatment of B cell malignancies, and more recently it has emerged as a potential treatment for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), via selective B lymphocyte depletion. Experience in oncology shows that rituximab is well tolerated in a variety of settings, with mild-to-moderate infusion related reactions following the first infusion being the most common adverse event. Current data suggest that the safety profile of rituximab in patients with RA is similar to that in oncology, but that the adverse events are less frequent and less severe in patients with RA. Keywords: B cell depletion, oncology, rheumatoid arthritis, rituximab, safety Introduction 161 patients has recently reported 24-week data that confirm the activity of rituximab in this indication [6]. In the clinical studies to date, rituximab has been well tolerated by patients with RA, with no major treatment related adverse events observed [4,5]. However, it is important to consider whether the safety profile in patients with B cell malignancies is relevant to patients with RA, because rela- tively few patients with RA have been treated with ritux- imab. The present review summarizes the safety of rituximab in the treatment of patients with B cell malignan- cies and considers the implications for use of the agent in the treatment o