Lessons learned from the preclinical drug discovery of asoprisnil and ulipristal for non-surgical treatment of uterine leiomyomas

Health-Related Quality of Life With Ulipristal Acetate for Treatment of Uterine Leiomyomas: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Ulipristal acetate is associated with significant improvements in health-related quality of life and symptom severity compared with placebo in women with symptomatic uterine leiomyomas.

OBJECTIVE:

To investigate effects of ulipristal acetate on health-related quality of life (QOL) and symptom severity in women with symptomatic uterine leiomyomas and abnormal uterine bleeding.

METHODS:

Women were randomized to ulipristal (5 mg, 10 mg) or placebo in two phase 3, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials (VENUS I and II). Health-related QOL and symptom severity were assessed at baseline, and over one (VENUS I and II) and two (VENUS II) 12-week treatment courses using the Uterine Fibroid Symptom Health-Related Quality of Life questionnaire. In pooled VENUS I and II data, change from baseline to the end of the first course for each Uterine Fibroid Symptom Health-Related Quality of Life scale was analyzed, including a Revised Activities subscale that measured physical and social activities. The proportion of women achieving meaningful change in the Symptom Severity (20 or more points), Health-Related QOL Total (20 or more points), and Revised Activities (30 or more points) scales was calculated. In VENUS II data, change from baseline to the end of each course in each scale was analyzed for each treatment arm.

RESULTS:

In pooled analyses, the intent-to-treat population included 589 patients (placebo, n=169; ulipristal 5 mg, n=215; ulipristal 10 mg, n=205). Significantly greater improvements from baseline in all Uterine Fibroid Symptom Health-Related Quality of Life scales were observed with both ulipristal doses compared with placebo (P<.001). A meaningful change in Revised Activities was achieved by 51 patients receiving placebo (34.9%), compared with 144 (73.5%; OR 5.0 [97.5% CI 2.9–8.6]) and 141 (80.6%; OR 7.9 [97.5% CI 4.3–14.6]) patients receiving ulipristal 5 mg, and 10 mg, respectively. In VENUS II, at end of courses 1 and 2, both ulipristal doses demonstrated significant improvements from baseline compared with placebo for all Uterine Fibroid Symptom Health-Related Quality of Life scales (P<.01). Mean Revised Activities scores showed that beneficial ulipristal effects were maintained in course 2, and improvements occurred on switching to ulipristal; results for other scales were similar.

CONCLUSION:

Ulipristal was associated with significant improvements in health-related QOL and symptom severity compared with placebo for women with symptomatic uterine leiomyomas.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION:

ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02147197 and NCT02147158.

FUNDING SOURCE:

Allergan plc, Dublin, Ireland.

Selective progesterone receptor modulators for fertility preservation in women with symptomatic uterine fibroids

Uterine fibroids (UFs, AKA leiomyoma) are the most important benign neoplastic threat to women's health, with costs up to hundreds of billions of health care dollars worldwide. Uterine fibroids caused morbidities exert a tremendous health toll, impacting the quality of life of women of all ethnicities, especially women of color. Clinical presentations include heavy vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain, bulk symptoms, subfertility, and obstetric complications. Current management strategies heavily lean toward surgical procedures; nonetheless, the choice of treatment is generally subject to patient's age and her desire to preserve future fertility. Women with UF who desire to maintain future fertility potential face a dilemma because of the limited treatment choices that are currently available to help them achieve that goal. Recently, ulipristal acetate the first of the promising family of oral selective progesterone receptor modulators has been approved for UF treatment in Europe, Canada, and several other countries and is under review for possible approval in the USA. In this review article, we discuss recent advances in the management options against UF with a bend toward oral effective long-term treatment alternatives who are particularly suited for those seeking to preserve their future fertility potential. We also explore the transformative concept of primary and secondary UF prevention using these new anti-UF agents. We envision a remarkable shift in the management of UF in future years from surgical/invasive treatment to orally administrated options; clearly, this potential shift will require additional intense clinical research.

Economic impact of ulipristal acetate on surgical procedures for uterine fibroids in France

OBJECTIVE

To assess the budget impact of using ulipristal acetate (UPA) 5 mg to treat women with uterine fibroids (UF) causing moderate to severe symptoms.

DESIGN

We modelled trends in the number of surgical procedures for symptomatic UF, with and without the use of UPA for preoperative or intermittent treatment and assessed the budget impact of UPA use from the French national healthcare insurance system perspective.

SETTING

A French national hospital database (PMSI) that records admissions and relative procedures to public and private hospitals.

PARTICIPANTS

Women eligible for surgical procedures for uterine fibroids.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Economic impact of UPA treatment.

RESULTS

This study based on observational retrospective data shows that the current use of UPA in its preoperative indication was associated with 5645 fewer surgeries from 2013 to 2015. Extrapolation suggests 17 885 fewer surgeries from 2016 to 2019. Overall, preoperative use of UPA results in substantial cost savings for the French national healthcare insurance system, with a cumulated budget impact estimated at €-5 million from 2013 to 2015 and €-13.5 million from 2016 to 2019. In addition, treating women nearing the menopause (≥48 years old) with intermittent treatment from 2017 to 2019 could produce an incremental cost saving of €19 million.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows that the use of UPA in women eligible for surgical procedures for UF is associated with considerable savings for the French national healthcare insurance system in both preoperative and intermittent indications by decreasing the need to perform surgeries.

Current management of myomas: the place of medical therapy with the advent of selective progesterone receptor modulators

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

To review the current management of myomas with the advent of selective progesterone receptor modulators.

RECENT FINDINGS

Selective progesterone receptor modulators have proved effective and recent publications on the use of ulipristal acetate (UPA) have analyzed the performance of long-term intermittent utilization of 10 mg UPA given in repeated courses of 3 months. This long-term intermittent therapy maximizes the efficacy of UPA. Indeed, control of bleeding is achieved sooner after each course. With each subsequent course, a statistically greater number of patients show a fibroid volume reduction of more than 50%.

SUMMARY

The choice of therapy is influenced by different factors, such as the severity of symptoms, tumor characteristics, age, and wish to preserve the uterus (and fertility). Use of UPA will undoubtedly modify the surgical approach.

Use of Ulipristal Acetate for the Management of Fibroid-Related Acute Abnormal Uterine Bleeding

BACKGROUND

Episodes of acute abnormal uterine bleeding related to uterine fibroids can cause significant morbidity. Traditional management with high-dose hormonal regimens may not be as effective when used in women with fibroids.

CASE

A 32-year-old woman with a 12 cm uterine fibroid presented with an episode of acute abnormal uterine bleeding requiring blood transfusion. In lieu of using a hormonal maintenance regimen after the bleeding had stabilized, the patient was treated with ulipristal acetate 5 mg daily for three months. Amenorrhea was induced rapidly and the patient had no further episodes of acute excessive uterine bleeding. She subsequently underwent a laparoscopic myomectomy with a satisfactory outcome.

CONCLUSION

Ulipristal acetate has been shown to induce amenorrhea rapidly in women with uterine fibroids, and it can be a useful treatment in the emergency management of fibroid-related acute abnormal uterine bleeding.

Long-term intermittent pharmacological therapy of uterine fibroids - a possibility to avoid hysterectomy and its negative consequences

Uterine fibroids are found in almost 20-40% of women of reproductive age. For each woman an individualised treatment method should be applied because the hysterectomy procedure is not a good option in every case. The uterus is an organ necessary not only in reproduction. Its removal may result in: pelvic floor dysfunction and stress urinary incontinence, negative impair on life quality, depressive disorders, increased risk of cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases, and higher incidence of neoplastic disease. According to the last scientific reports, selective progesterone receptor modulators are the effective therapeutic option in uterine fibroids in women of reproductive age because progesterone is an important factor in their pathogenesis. Ulipristal acetate (UPA) is a progesterone receptor antagonist. It inhibits cell proliferation and angiogenesis in uterine fibroids and also reduces collagen deposits in extracellular matrix. Significant data concerning ulipristal acetate efficacy have been provided by scientific research, especially from the consecutive PEARL studies. Oral ulipristal acetate effectively and safely controls bleeding and pain in patients with symptomatic fibroids. It reduces fibroid volume and restores quality of life. The results of UPA long-term intermittent treatment are largely maintained during the off-treatment periods.

Abnormal uterine bleeding as a presenting symptom is related to multiple uterine leiomyoma: an ultrasound-based study

Purpose

To determine the prevalence of uterine leiomyomas, diagnosed by ultrasound, in a private health care setting located in the central eastern region of Portugal, and to explore the demographic and clinical factors related to diagnosis and symptomatology.

Patients and methods

The files of 624 patients attending a private clinic in Covilhã, Portugal, from January 2 to December 31, 2010 were retrieved for evaluation. Pelvic ultrasound record, age, weight, height, age at menarche, number of pregnancies and deliveries, marital status, menstrual cycles characteristic, and contraceptive method at consultation were included in the analysis.

Results

Uterine leiomyoma (UL) was diagnosed by ultrasonography in 161 (25.8%) patients. A single UL was diagnosed in 80 (49.7%) patients. In 79 (49.1%) patients, the largest leiomyoma had a dimension <20 mm. Prevalence of UL was age dependent: at 11.0% for women 20–39 years old; 45.4% for those aged 40–59 years; and 19.5% for women 60 years or older. Metrorrhagia was the most distressing presenting symptom. When menorrhagia was the presenting symptom, the probability of having an ultrasound diagnosis of UL was 73.3%. Metrorrhagia or menorrhagia, as presenting symptom, was significantly related to the ultrasound diagnosis of multiple ULs.

Conclusion

UL was especially prevalent in women aged between 40 and 59 years. Patients with multiple ULs had significantly more abnormal uterine bleeding. In patients with menorrhagia or metrorrhagia, special attention should be taken in searching for the presence of multiple ULs during ultrasound.