Safety and efficacy of Rapamune® (Sirolimus) in kidney transplant recipients: results of a prospective post-marketing surveillance study in Korea

BACKGROUND: Few post-marketing surveillance studies have examined the safety and efficacy of Rapamune® (Sirolimus) in Asian countries. This study aimed to better understand safety and efficacy of Rapamune for kidney transplant recipients in the routine clinical practice setting in Korea. METHODS: This was an open-label, non-comparative, observational, prospective, multi-center, post-marketing surveillance study conducted at 15 Korean transplant centers between 31 August 2009 and 24 September 2015. The subjects were administered Rapamune as part of routine practice. The safety was monitored based on reporting of adverse events (AEs). Efficacy endpoints included acute rejection, graft function, graft survival, and patient survival. RESULTS: Rapamune was most commonly used for late conversion therapy after post-transplant 1 year and was substituted for anti-metabolites (63.6%) or calcineurin inhibitors (28.7%). The median treatment duration of Rapamune was 182 days. Among 209 subjects enrolled, AEs and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were reported in 54.07% and 43.06% of subjects, respectively, in the safety analysis set. Most of the AEs were expected (96.21%), mild (75.83%), did not result in any action taken with regard to the study drug (72.99%), and resolved by the end of the study (75.36%). The most frequently reported AEs/ADRs were pharyngitis and diarrhea. Most of the serious AEs/ADRs occurred in one or two subjects. Unexpected ADRs of renal artery occlusion and cholangitis were reported by one subject each. The incidence of biopsy-proven acute rejection was 2.87%. At the end of the study, 99.51% of the subjects and their grafts had survived. The mean eGFR was 64.72 ± 19.56 mL/min. CONCLUSIONS: Rapamune had an acceptable safety profile in prevention of kidney allograft rejection in Korea.