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Title: Enbrel (Etanercept) Less Expensive than Infliximab/Methotrexate for Rheumatoid Arthritis: Presented at Eular

"Enbrel (Etanercept) Less Expensive than Infliximab/Methotrexate for Rheumatoid Arthritis: Presented at Eular"

By Alison Palkhivala Special to DG News STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN -- June 18, 2002 -- Etanercept (Enbrel®) therapy may be a less costly option than infliximab combined with methotrexate for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, according to new research. The study was presented here this week at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). Daniel C. Malone, PhD, of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Arizona, United States, and colleagues compared the cost-effectiveness of monotherapy with etanercept 25 mg twice-weekly compared to infliximab 3 mg/kg or 10 mg/kg every four to eight weeks plus methotrexate. They obtained clinical data on the drugs from the Anti-TNF Trial in Rheumatoid Arthritis with Concomitant Therapy (ATTRACT) trial for infliximab and the Etanercept Therapy in Rheumatoid Arthritis (ERA) trial for etanercept. Dr. Malone's team based medication costs on United States wholesale prices, and the primary analysis was conducted for a patient weighing 74kg, which is the average weight of persons in the United States. Based on the results of clinical studies, the investigators estimate that 63 percent of patients taking etanercept monotherapy have no radiographic progression of their disease over two years, compared to only 43 to 54 percent of patients taking various doses infliximab. Taking the risk of adverse events and their costs into account, the investigators estimated that the cost of preventing one RA patients from having radiographic progression of disease over two years is $48,898 for etanercept monotherapy. Achieving the same goal using infliximab plus methotrexate would cost between $84,002 and $279,855. They also estimated that the efficacy of infliximab 3mg/kg every eight weeks would have to increase from 43 percent of patients having no radiographic progression over two years to 75 percent of patients before infliximab could be considered as cost effective as etanercept. According to the investigators, monotherapy with etanercept appears to be a less costly therapy than infliximab plus methotrexate for the treatment of RA. This research was conducted in conjunction with Immunex Corporation, Tucson, AZ, United States, makers of Enbrel®.

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