[Italian study on the treatment of anaemia in chronic dialysis patients switched over to less frequent doses of darbepoetin from human recombinant erythropoietin (rHuEPO)].

Background: Darbepoetin alpha is a novel erythropoiesis stimulating protein with unique properties as compared to recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO), including a three-fold longer elimination half-life that allows for less frequent dosing. This study was aimed at testing the efficacy and safety of darbepoetin alpha in a large number of chronic dialysis patients switched from rHuEPO.

Methods: Nine hundred and fifty dialysis patients in stable treatment with rHuEPO were switched to darbepoetin alpha. Patients receiving rHuEPO 2 or 3 times weekly were switched to once weekly darbepoetin alpha and those receiving rHuEPO once weekly were switched to once every other week darbepoetin alpha. Patients received darbepoetin alpha by the same route of administration (SC or IV) as the one used for rHuEPO. The unit doses of darbepoetin alpha (10-150 microg) were titrated to maintain haemoglobin concentration within -1.0 and +1.5 g/dL of the individual mean baseline haemoglobin levels and between 10 and 13 g/dL for 24 weeks.

Results: The mean change in haemoglobin from baseline to the evaluation period (weeks 21-24) was statistically but not clinically significant [-0.10 g/dL (95% CI: -0.18, -0.02]. In general, the geometric mean weekly dose of study drug from screening/baseline to evaluation period remained substantially unmodified [(from 26.10 micro g/wk to 25.90 microg/wk; percentage change -0.40% (95% CI: -3.78, 3.10)]. Overall, darbepoetin alpha was well tolerated.

Conclusions: The treatment of anaemia of a large dialysis patient population with unit dosing of darbepoetin alpha is effective and safe in maintaining target haemoglobin concentration at reduced dose frequency.