Fluticasone furoate/vilanterol: a review of its use in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Development of highly potent glucocorticoids for steroid-resistant severe asthma

Clinical application of inhaled glucocorticoids (GCs) has been hampered in the case of steroid-resistant severe asthma. To overcome this limitation, we have developed a series of highly potent GCs, including VSGC12, VSG158, and VSG159 based on the structural insight into the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). Particularly, VSG158 exhibits a maximal repression of lung inflammation and is 10 times more potent than the currently most potent clinical GC, Fluticasone Furoate (FF), in a murine model of asthma. More importantly, VSG158 displays a unique property to reduce neutrophilic inflammation in a steroid-resistant airway inflammation model, which is refractory to clinically available GCs, including dexamethasone and FF. VSG158 and VSG159 are able to deliver effective treatments with reduced off-target and side effects. In addition, these GCs also display pharmacokinetic properties that are suitable for the inhalation delivery method for asthma treatment. Taken together, the excellent therapeutic and side-effect profile of these highly potent GCs holds promise for treating steroid-resistant severe asthma.

Population Pharmacokinetics of Inhaled Fluticasone Furoate and Vilanterol in Subjects with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Background and Objectives

Previous pharmacokinetic studies of the inhaled corticosteroid, fluticasone furoate (FF), and the long-acting, beta2-receptor agonist, vilanterol (VI) have been performed in relatively small populations using non-compartmental pharmacokinetic methods and censored data (due to low drug exposure relative to assay sensitivity). This paper presents a population pharmacokinetic analysis, utilizing pooled concentration–time data from clinical studies in healthy subjects and from global trials in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The objective of this analysis was to characterize the population pharmacokinetics of FF and VI following once-daily inhalation dosing of FF/VI or the individual components (FF and VI) and to identify significant covariates that impact systemic exposure to FF and VI in this population.

Methods

Population pharmacokinetic methods that maximize the likelihood of all data were developed to describe systemic exposure to FF and VI following once-daily FF/VI, FF, or VI, and to identify significant covariates that impact the pharmacokinetics. COPD patients (N = 1225 for the FF analysis and N = 1091 for the VI analysis; 94 and 93 % of total data, respectively) and healthy subjects contributed to the analysis.

Results

FF data were described by a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and elimination. The population grouping “race” was a significant covariate on inhaled clearance (CL/F). The area under the curve over 24 h (AUC_0–24) for FF was higher for East Asian, Japanese, and South East Asian (average 23–30 %) and Asian Central, White Arabic, American Indian/Native Alaskan, and ‘other’ (10–26 %) subjects compared with White/Caucasians. VI pharmacokinetics were described by a three-compartment model with zero-order absorption and first-order elimination. Significant demographic covariates identified to affect pharmacokinetics of VI were age [on CL/F and central volume (V₁/F)], bodyweight (on CL/F), sex and smoking (on V₁/F).

Conclusions

While significant effects of the covariates were observed in this study, the magnitude of these effects on systemic exposure is not large enough to warrant FF/VI dosage adjustment in patients with COPD.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13318-015-0303-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The Salford Lung Study: a pioneering comparative effectiveness approach to COPD and asthma in clinical trials

The Salford Lung Study (SLS) of patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a practical, community-based, randomized, open-label pragmatic study on the efficacy and safety of the once-daily dry powder inhaler that combines the inhaled corticosteroid fluticasone furoate (FF) with the long-acting beta₂ agonist vilanterol (VI). The asthma component of the SLS is not yet reported but the COPD component, done over a 12-month period, found a statistically significant 8.4% reduction in COPD exacerbations when compared to usual care. No differences in adverse events, including serious adverse events and pneumonia, were noted. The importance of real-world findings, such as those found in the SLS COPD trial with inhaled FF/VI, is discussed in comparison to classical randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with inhaled FF/VI in COPD patients. The real-world, community-based pragmatic RCT like the SLS provides additional generalizable data with direct clinical applicability and potential usefulness in the development of practice guidelines. The results from the SLS, along with those of large and small RCTs, are supportive of the use of once-daily FF/VI in COPD maintenance therapy.

Triple inhaled therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Combining individual drugs in a single inhaler is the most convenient way to deliver triple therapy. A long-acting muscarinic receptor antagonist (LAMA) added to an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)/long-acting β₂-adrenoceptor agonist (LABA) fixed-dose combination (FDC) can improve efficacy of pharmacological treatment of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). New inhaled ICS/LABA/LAMA FDCs, including fluticasone furoate/vilanterol/umeclidinium, budesonide/formoterol/glycopyrronium and beclometasone/formoterol/glycopyrronium, are in Phase III of clinical development for COPD. Triple inhaled therapy might be particularly useful in patients with severe to very severe COPD, above all in those with peripheral blood or sputum eosinophilia, asthma-COPD overlap syndrome (ACOS) or frequent exacerbators. Future prospective studies should assess efficacy and safety of triple ICS/LABA/LAMA therapy in selected COPD phenotypes.

COPD: A stepwise or a hit hard approach?

Current guidelines differ slightly on the recommendations for treatment of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients, and although there are some undisputed recommendations, there is still debate regarding the management of COPD. One of the hindrances to deciding which therapeutic approach to choose is late diagnosis or misdiagnosis of COPD. After a proper diagnosis is achieved and severity assessed, the choice between a stepwise or "hit hard" approach has to be made. For GOLD A patients the stepwise approach is recommended, whilst for B, C and D patients this remains debatable. Moreover, in patients for whom inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) are recommended, a step-up or "hit hard" approach with triple therapy will depend on the patient's characteristics and, for patients who are being over-treated with ICS, ICS withdrawal should be performed, in order to optimize therapy and reduce excessive medications. This paper discusses and proposes stepwise, "hit hard", step-up and ICS withdrawal therapeutic approaches for COPD patients based on their GOLD group. We conclude that all approaches have benefits, and only a careful patient selection will determine which approach is better, and which patients will benefit the most from each approach.

Economic evaluations of fluticasone-propionate/salmeterol combination therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a review of published studies

This review identifies and evaluates the comprehensive reporting of peer-reviewed economic evaluations of the effectiveness of fluticasone-propionate/salmeterol combination (FSC) therapy for maintenance treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Economic evaluations were included if published in English since 2003. Evaluation categories included in the review were cost-effectiveness, cost-utility, and cost-consequence analyses. FSC is cost-effective in comparison to short-acting bronchodilators (SABDs). Cost and outcome differences between FSC and other long-acting therapies were modest. Studies exhibited large variations in populations, designs and environment, limiting the ability to draw conclusions. Many new maintenance treatments for COPD have been approved since 2010. Most have yet to be compared to older treatments like FSC. Evaluations are needed that consider costs and outcomes from a societal perspective (e.g., patients' ability to keep working) and evaluations that include subgroup analyses to investigate differential impacts according to clusters of patient characteristics.

Fluticasone furoate/vilanterol: a review of its use in patients with asthma

Fluticasone furoate/vilanterol (Relvar(®)) is a once-daily, fixed combination of an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) and a long-acting β2-adrenoreceptor agonist (LABA), delivered via a dry powder inhaler (Ellipta(®)). It is approved for the treatment of asthma in the EU and Japan, and is the first once-daily ICS/LABA to be available for this indication. Fluticasone furoate is an enhanced-affinity glucocorticoid receptor agonist, with potent anti-inflammatory activity. Vilanterol produces rapid and prolonged bronchodilation. In phase III trials in adolescents and adults with various levels of asthma uncontrolled on ICS and/or ICS/LABA, fluticasone furoate/vilanterol 100/25 or 200/25 µg once daily (approved dosages in the EU) significantly improved pulmonary function compared with placebo or equivalent dosages of fluticasone furoate alone (in some trials) or fluticasone propionate. In similar trials, fluticasone furoate/vilanterol 100/25 µg once daily was as effective as fluticasone propionate/salmeterol 250/50 µg twice daily in improving pulmonary function and significantly reduced the risk of severe asthma exacerbation relative to fluticasone furoate alone. In clinical trials, fluticasone furoate/vilanterol was generally well tolerated with fewer than 15 % of patients experiencing treatment-related adverse events, the most common of which were oral/oropharyngeal candidiasis, dysphonia, extrasystoles and cough. The tolerability profile of fluticasone furoate/vilanterol was generally similar to that of fluticasone propionate/salmeterol. Thus, fluticasone furoate/vilanterol is an effective and generally well tolerated ICS/LABA option for the treatment of uncontrolled asthma.

Discovery of a highly potent glucocorticoid for asthma treatment

Glucocorticoids are the most effective treatment for asthma. However, their clinical applications are limited by low efficacy in severe asthma and by undesired side effects associated with high dose or prolonged use. The most successful approach to overcome these limitations has been the development of highly potent glucocorticoids that can be delivered to the lungs by inhalation to achieve local efficacy with minimal systemic effects. On the basis of our previous structural studies, we designed and developed a highly potent glucocorticoid, VSGC12, which showed an improved anti-inflammation activity in both cell-based reporter assays and cytokine inhibition experiments, as well as in a gene expression profiling of mouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells. In a mouse asthma model, VSGC12 delivered a higher efficacy than fluticasone furoate, a leading clinical compound, in many categories including histology and the number of differentiated immune cells. VSGC12 also showed a higher potency than fluticasone furoate in repressing most asthma symptoms. Finally, VSGC12 showed a better side effect profile than fluticasone furoate at their respective effective doses, including better insulin response and less bone loss in an animal model. The excellent therapeutic and side effect properties of VSGC12 provide a promising perspective for developing this potent glucocorticoid as a new effective drug for asthma.

Positioning new pharmacotherapies for COPD

COPD imposes considerable worldwide burden in terms of morbidity and mortality. In recognition of this, there is now extensive focus on early diagnosis, secondary prevention, and optimizing medical management of the disease. While established guidelines recognize different grades of disease severity and offer a structured basis for disease management based on symptoms and risk, it is becoming increasingly evident that COPD is a condition characterized by many phenotypes and its control in a single patient may require clinicians to have access to a broader spectrum of pharmacotherapies. This review summarizes recent developments in COPD management and compares established pharmacotherapy with new and emerging pharmacotherapies including long-acting muscarinic antagonists, long-acting β-2 sympathomimetic agonists, and fixed-dose combinations of long-acting muscarinic antagonists and long-acting β-2 sympathomimetic agonists as well as inhaled cortiocosteroids, phosphodiesterase inhibitors, and targeted anti-inflammatory drugs. We also review the available oral medications and new agents with novel mechanisms of action in early stages of development. With several new pharmacological agents intended for the management of COPD, it is our goal to familiarize potential prescribers with evidence relating to the efficacy and safety of new medications and to suggest circumstances in which these therapies could be most useful.

Efficacy and safety of fluticasone furoate/vilanterol (50/25 mcg; 100/25 mcg; 200/25 mcg) in Asian patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a randomized placebo-controlled trial

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Three strengths of fluticasone furoate/vilanterol (FF/VI) were previously evaluated for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a program of global Phase 3 studies that included only a small subgroup of Asian patients. This study further evaluated the efficacy and safety of the same three strengths of FF/VI exclusively in Asian patients.

METHODS

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, multicenter study. Patients with post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ≤0.70, FEV1 ≤70% predicted and modified Medical Research Council score ≥2 were randomized (1:1:1:1) to placebo, FF/VI 50/25 mcg, 100/25 mcg or 200/25 mcg once daily via the ELLIPTA dry powder inhaler. The primary efficacy endpoint was change from baseline in trough FEV1 at Week 24.

RESULTS

The intent-to-treat population comprised 643 patients. Statistically significant (p < 0.001) improvements in trough FEV1 were observed with all strengths of FF/VI versus placebo at Week 24 (0.14-0.19 L). Reduction of supplemental albuterol use was observed with all strengths of FF/VI versus placebo. The incidence of on-treatment adverse events (AEs) was 48% with FF/VI 200/25 mcg and 37-40% with other treatments. The incidence of on-treatment serious AEs was 4-9% with FF/VI treatments versus 9% with placebo; however, the study only covered a 6 month treatment period and was not powered to assess effects on exacerbations. No clinically significant treatment effects versus placebo were identified for electrocardiogram, vital signs, 24 hour urinary cortisol excretion and pneumonia.

CONCLUSIONS

All strengths of FF/VI improved lung function with an acceptable safety profile. There is no evidence to suggest that dose adjustment may be required in Asian patients using FF/VI 100/25 mcg for the treatment of COPD.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

NCT01376245.