Entyvio 300 mg powder for concentrate for solution for infusion

Each vial contains 300 mg of vedolizumab.

After reconstitution, each mL contains 60 mg of vedolizumab.

Vedolizumab is a humanised IgG1 monoclonal antibody that binds to the human α4β7 integrin and is produced using recombinant DNA technology in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells.

For the full list of excipients, see section 6.1.

Powder for concentrate for solution for infusion.

White to off-white lyophilised cake or powder.

Ulcerative colitis

Entyvio is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis who have had an inadequate response with, lost response to, or were intolerant to either conventional therapy or a tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) antagonist.

Crohn's disease

Entyvio is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease who have had an inadequate response with, lost response to, or were intolerant to either conventional therapy or a tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) antagonist.

Entyvio treatment should be initiated and supervised by specialist healthcare professionals experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease (see section 4.4). Patients should be given the package leaflet and the Patient Alert Card.

Posology

Ulcerative colitis

The recommended dose regimen of Entyvio is 300 mg administered by intravenous infusion at zero, two and six weeks and then every eight weeks thereafter.

Therapy for patients with ulcerative colitis should be discontinued if no evidence of therapeutic benefit is observed by week 10 (see section 5.1).

Some patients who have experienced a decrease in their response may benefit from an increase in dosing frequency to Entyvio 300 mg every four weeks.

In patients who have responded to treatment with Entyvio, corticosteroids may be reduced and/or discontinued in accordance with standard of care.

Retreatment

If therapy is interrupted and there is a need to restart treatment with Entyvio, dosing at every four weeks may be considered (see section 5.1). The treatment interruption period in clinical trials extended up to one year. Efficacy was regained with no evident increase in adverse reactions or infusion-related reactions during retreatment with vedolizumab (see section 4.8).

Crohn's disease

The recommended dose regimen of Entyvio is 300 mg administered by intravenous infusion at zero, two and six weeks and then every eight weeks thereafter.

Patients with Crohn's disease, who have not shown a response may benefit from a dose of Entyvio at week 10 (see section 4.4). Therapy should be continued every eight weeks from week 14 in responding patients. Therapy for patients with Crohn's disease should be discontinued if no evidence of therapeutic benefit is observed by week 14 (see section 5.1).

Some patients who have experienced a decrease in their response may benefit from an increase in dosing frequency to Entyvio 300 mg every four weeks.

In patients who have responded to treatment with Entyvio, corticosteroids may be reduced and/or discontinued in accordance with standard of care.

Retreatment

If therapy is interrupted and there is a need to restart treatment with Entyvio, dosing at every four weeks may be considered (see section 5.1). The treatment interruption period in clinical trials extended up to one year. Efficacy was regained with no evident increase in adverse reactions or infusion-related reactions during retreatment with vedolizumab (see section 4.8).

Special populations

Elderly patients

No dose adjustment is required in elderly patients. Population pharmacokinetic analyses showed no effect of age (see section 5.2).

Patients with renal or hepatic impairment

Entyvio has not been studied in these patient populations. No dose recommendations can be made.

Paediatric population

The safety and efficacy of vedolizumab in children aged 0 to 17 years old have not been established. No data are available.

Method of administration

Entyvio is for intravenous use only. It is to be reconstituted and further diluted prior to intravenous administration

Entyvio is administered as an intravenous infusion over 30 minutes. Patients should be monitored during and after infusion (see section 4.4).

For instructions on reconstitution and dilution of the medicinal product before administration, see section 6.6.

Hypersensitivity to the active substance or to any of the excipients listed in section 6.1.

Active severe infections such as tuberculosis (TB), sepsis, cytomegalovirus, listeriosis, and opportunistic infections such as Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML) (see section 4.4).

Vedolizumab should be administered in a healthcare setting equipped to allow management of acute hypersensitivity reactions including anaphylaxis, if they occur. Appropriate monitoring and medical support measures should be available for immediate use when administering vedolizumab. All patients should be observed continuously during each infusion. For the first two infusions, they should also be observed for approximately 2 hours following completion of the infusion for signs and symptoms of acute hypersensitivity reactions. For all subsequent infusions, patients should be observed for approximately 1 hour following completion of the infusion.

Infusion-related reactions

In clinical studies, infusion-related reactions (IRR) and hypersensitivity reactions have been reported, with the majority being mild to moderate in severity (see section 4.8).

If a severe IRR, anaphylactic reaction, or other severe reaction occurs, administration of Entyvio must be discontinued immediately and appropriate treatment initiated (e.g., epinephrine and antihistamines) (see section 4.3).

If a mild to moderate IRR occurs, the infusion rate can be slowed or interrupted and appropriate treatment initiated. Once the mild or moderate IRR subsides, continue the infusion. Physicians should consider pre-treatment (e.g., with antihistamine, hydrocortisone and/or paracetamol) prior to the next infusion for patients with a history of mild to moderate IRR to vedolizumab, in order to minimize their risks (see section 4.8).

Infections

Vedolizumab is a gut-selective integrin antagonist with no identified systemic immunosuppressive activity (see section 5.1).

Physicians should be aware of the potential increased risk of opportunistic infections or infections for which the gut is a defensive barrier (see section 4.8). Entyvio treatment is not to be initiated in patients with active, severe infections until the infections are controlled, and physicians should consider withholding treatment in patients who develop a severe infection while on chronic treatment with Entyvio. Caution should be exercised when considering the use of vedolizumab in patients with a controlled chronic severe infection or a history of recurring severe infections. Patients should be monitored closely for infections before, during and after treatment. Entyvio is contraindicated in patients with active tuberculosis (see section 4.3). Before starting treatment with vedolizumab, patients must be screened for tuberculosis according to the local practice. If latent tuberculosis is diagnosed, appropriate treatment must be started with anti-tuberculosis treatment in accordance with local recommendations, before beginning vedolizumab. In patients diagnosed with TB whilst receiving vedolizumab therapy, then vedolizumab therapy should be discontinued until the TB infection has been resolved.

Some integrin antagonists and some systemic immunosuppressive agents have been associated with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), which is a rare and often fatal opportunistic infection caused by the John Cunningham (JC) virus. By binding to the α4β7 integrin expressed on gut-homing lymphocytes, vedolizumab exerts an immunosuppressive effect specific to the gut. Although no systemic immunosuppressive effect was noted in healthy subjects the effects on systemic immune system function in patients with inflammatory bowel disease is not known.

Healthcare professionals should monitor patients on vedolizumab for any new onset or worsening of neurological signs and symptoms as outlined in physician education materials, and consider neurological referral if they occur. The patient is to be given a Patient Alert Card (see section 4.2). If PML is suspected, treatment with vedolizumab must be withheld; if confirmed, treatment must be permanently discontinued.

Malignancies

The risk of malignancy is increased in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Immunomodulatory medicinal products may increase the risk of malignancy (see section 4.8).

Prior and concurrent use of biological products

No vedolizumab clinical trial data are available for patients previously treated with natalizumab or rituximab. Caution should be exercised when considering the use of Entyvio in these patients.

Patients previously exposed to natalizumab should normally wait a minimum of 12 weeks prior to initiating therapy with Entyvio, unless otherwise indicated by the patient's clinical condition.

No clinical trial data for concomitant use of vedolizumab with biologic immunosuppressants are available. Therefore, the use of Entyvio in such patients is not recommended.

Live and oral vaccines

In a placebo-controlled study of healthy volunteers, a single 750 mg dose of vedolizumab did not lower rates of protective immunity to hepatitis B virus in subjects who were vaccinated intramuscularly with three doses of recombinant hepatitis B surface antigen. Vedolizumab-exposed subjects had lower seroconversion rates after receiving a killed, oral cholera vaccine. The impact on other oral and nasal vaccines is unknown. It is recommended that all patients be brought up to date with all immunisations in agreement with current immunisation guidelines prior to initiating Entyvio therapy. Patients receiving vedolizumab treatment may continue to receive non-live vaccines. There are no data on the secondary transmission of infection by live vaccines in patients receiving vedolizumab. Administration of the influenza vaccine should be by injection in line with routine clinical practice. Other live vaccines may be administered concurrently with vedolizumab only if the benefits clearly outweigh the risks.

Induction of remission in Crohn's disease

Induction of remission in Crohn's disease may take up to 14 weeks in some patients. The reasons for this are not fully known and are possibly related to the mechanism of action. This should be taken into consideration, particularly in patients with severe active disease at baseline not previously treated with TNFα antagonists. (see also section 5.1.)

Exploratory subgroup analyses from the clinical trials in Crohn's disease suggested that vedolizumab administered in patients without concomitant corticosteroid treatment may be less effective for induction of remission in Crohn's disease than in those patients already receiving concomitant corticosteroids (regardless of use of concomitant immunomodulators; see section 5.1).

No interaction studies have been performed.

Vedolizumab has been studied in adult ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease patients with concomitant administration of corticosteroids, immunomodulators (azathioprine, 6-mercaptopurine, and methotrexate), and aminosalicylates. Population pharmacokinetic analyses suggest that co-administration of such agents did not have a clinically meaningful effect on vedolizumab pharmacokinetics. The effect of vedolizumab on the pharmacokinetics of commonly co-administered medicinal compounds has not been studied.

Vaccinations

Live vaccines, in particular live oral vaccines, should be used with caution concurrently with Entyvio (see section 4.4).

Women of childbearing potential

Women of childbearing potential should use adequate contraception to prevent pregnancy and to continue its use for at least 18 weeks after the last treatment.

Pregnancy

There are limited amount of data from the use of vedolizumab in pregnant women.

Animal studies do not indicate direct or indirect harmful effects with respect to reproductive toxicity (see section 5.3).

As a precautionary measure, it is preferable to avoid the use of Entyvio during pregnancy unless the benefits clearly outweigh any potential risk to both the mother and foetus.

Breast-feeding

Vedolizumab has been detected in human milk. The effect of vedolizumab on infants is unknown. The use of vedolizumab in lactating women should take into account the benefit of therapy to the mother and potential risks to the infant.

Fertility

There are no data on the effects of vedolizumab on human fertility. Effects on male and female fertility have not been formally evaluated in animal studies (see section 5.3).

Entyvio has minor influence on the ability to drive and use machines, as dizziness has been reported in a small number of patients.

Summary of safety profile

The most commonly reported adverse reactions are infections (such as nasopharyngitis, upper respiratory tract infection, bronchitis, influenza and sinusitis), headache, nausea, pyrexia, fatigue, cough, arthralgia.

Injection site reactions (with symptoms such as dyspnea, bronchospasm, urticaria, flushing, rash, and increased blood pressure and heart rate) have also been reported in patients treated with vedolizumab.

Tabulated list of adverse reactions

The following listing of adverse reactions is based on clinical trial and post marketing experience and is displayed by system organ class. Within the system organ classes, adverse reactions are listed under headings of the following frequency categories: very common (≥ 1/10), common (≥ 1/100 to < 1/10), uncommon (≥ 1/1,000 to < 1/100) and very rare (< 1/10,000). Within each frequency grouping, adverse reactions are presented in order of decreasing seriousness.

Description of selected adverse reactions

Infusion-related reactions

In GEMINI I and II controlled studies, 4% of vedolizumab-treated patients and 3% of placebo-treated patients experienced an adverse reaction defined by the investigator as infusion-related reaction (IRR) (see section 4.4). No individual Preferred Term reported as an IRR occurred at a rate above 1%. The majority of IRRs were mild or moderate in intensity and < 1% resulted in discontinuation of study treatment. Observed IRRs generally resolved with no or minimal intervention following the infusion. Most infusion related reactions occurred within the first 2 hours. Of those patients who had infusion related reactions, those dosed with vedolizumab had more infusion related reactions with in the first 2 hours as compared to placebo patients with infusion related reactions. Most infusion related reactions were not serious and occurred during the infusion or within the first hour after infusion is completed.

One serious adverse reaction of IRR was reported in a Crohn's disease patient during the second infusion (symptoms reported were dyspnoea, bronchospasm, urticaria, flushing, rash, and increased blood pressure and heart rate) and was successfully managed with discontinuation of infusion and treatment with antihistamine and intravenous hydrocortisone. In patients who received vedolizumab at weeks 0 and 2 followed by placebo, no increase in the rate of IRR was seen upon retreatment with vedolizumab after loss of response.

Infections

In GEMINI I and II controlled studies, the rate of infections was 0.85 per patient-year in the vedolizumab-treated patients and 0.70 per patient-year in the placebo-treated patients. The infections consisted primarily of nasopharyngitis, upper respiratory tract infection, sinusitis, and urinary tract infections. Most patients continued on vedolizumab after the infection resolved.

In GEMINI I and II controlled studies, the rate of serious infections was 0.07 per patient year in vedolizumab-treated patients and 0.06 per patient year in placebo-treated patients. Over time, there was no significant increase in the rate of serious infections.

In controlled and open-label studies in adults with vedolizumab, serious infections have been reported, which include tuberculosis, sepsis (some fatal), salmonella sepsis, listeria meningitis, and cytomegaloviral colitis.

Malignancy

Overall, results from the clinical program to date do not suggest an increased risk for malignancy with vedolizumab treatment; however, the number of malignancies was small and long-term exposure was limited. Long-term safety evaluations are ongoing.

Reporting of suspected adverse reactions

Reporting suspected adverse reactions after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via the Yellow Card Scheme. Website: www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store.

Doses up to 10 mg/kg (approximately 2.5 times the recommended dose) have been administered in clinical trials. No dose-limiting toxicity was seen in clinical trials.

Pharmacotherapeutic group: immunosuppressants, selective immunosuppressants, ATC code: L04AA33

Mechanism of action

Vedolizumab is a gut-selective immunosuppressive biologic. It is a humanised monoclonal antibody that binds specifically to the α4β7 integrin, which is preferentially expressed on gut homing T helper lymphocytes. By binding to α4β7 on certain lymphocytes, vedolizumab inhibits adhesion of these cells to mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule-1 (MAdCAM-1), but not to vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1). MAdCAM-1 is mainly expressed on gut endothelial cells and plays a critical role in the homing of T lymphocytes to tissues within the gastrointestinal tract. Vedolizumab does not bind to, nor inhibit function of, the α4β1 and αEβ7 integrins.

The α4β7 integrin is expressed on a discrete subset of memory T helper lymphocytes which preferentially migrate into the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and cause inflammation that is characteristic of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, both of which are chronic inflammatory immunologically mediated conditions of the GI tract. Vedolizumab reduces gastrointestinal inflammation in UC and CD patients. Inhibiting the interaction of α4β7 with MAdCAM-1 with vedolizumab prevents transmigration of gut-homing memory T helper lymphocytes across the vascular endothelium into parenchymal tissue in nonhuman primates and induced a reversible 3-fold elevation of these cells in peripheral blood. The murine precursor of vedolizumab alleviated gastrointestinal inflammation in colitic cotton-top tamarins, a model of ulcerative colitis.

In healthy subjects, ulcerative colitis patients, or Crohn's disease patients, vedolizumab does not elevate neutrophils, basophils, eosinophils, B-helper and cytotoxic T lymphocytes, total memory T helper lymphocytes, monocytes or natural killer cells, in the peripheral blood with no leukocytosis observed.

Vedolizumab did not affect immune surveillance and inflammation of the central nervous system in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis in non-human primates, a model of multiple sclerosis. Vedolizumab did not affect immune responses to antigenic challenge in the dermis and muscle (see section 4.4). In contrast, vedolizumab inhibited an immune response to a gastrointestinal antigenic challenge in healthy human volunteers (see section 4.4).

Immunogenicity

Antibodies to vedolizumab may develop during vedolizumab treatment most of which are neutralising. The formation of anti-vedolizumab antibodies is associated with increased clearance of vedolizumab and lower rates of clinical remission.

Infusion related reactions after vedolizumab infusion are reported in subjects with anti-vedolizumab antibodies.

Pharmacodynamic effects

In clinical trials with vedolizumab at doses ranging from 2 to 10 mg/kg, > 95% saturation of α4β7 receptors on subsets of circulating lymphocytes involved in gut immune surveillance was observed in patients.

Vedolizumab did not affect CD4+ and CD8+ trafficking into the CNS as evidenced by the lack of change in the ratio of CD4+/CD8+ in cerebrospinal fluid pre- and post-vedolizumab administration in healthy human volunteers. These data are consistent with investigations in nonhuman primates which did not detect effects on immune surveillance of the CNS.

Clinical efficacy

Ulcerative colitis

The efficacy and safety of vedolizumab for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (Mayo score 6 to 12 with endoscopic sub score ≥ 2) was demonstrated in a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluating efficacy endpoints at week 6 and week 52 (GEMINI I). Enrolled patients had failed at least one conventional therapy, including corticosteroids, immunomodulators, and/or the TNFα antagonist infliximab (including primary non-responders). Concomitant stable doses of oral aminosalicylates, corticosteroids and/or immunomodulators were permitted.

For the evaluation of the week 6 endpoints, 374 patients were randomised in a double-blind fashion (3:2) to receive vedolizumab 300 mg or placebo at week 0 and week 2. Primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with clinical response (defined as reduction in complete Mayo score of ≥ 3 points and ≥ 30% from baseline with an accompanying decrease in rectal ble