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Drug Safety-related Labeling Changes (SrLC)

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LEUKINE (BLA-103362)

(SARGRAMOSTIM)

Safety-related Labeling Changes Approved by FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER)

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02/10/2017 (SUPPL-5237)

Approved Drug Label (PDF)

5 Warnings and Precautions

PRECAUTIONS General

 (subsection revised)

Immunogenicity

Treatment with LEUKINE may induce neutralizing anti-drug antibodies. The incidence of anti-sargramostim neutralizing antibodies may be related to duration of exposure to LEUKINE. In a study of patients with normal neutrophil count and a solid tumor in complete response (an unapproved use) treated with LEUKINE for up to 12 months, 41% of 41 evaluable patients developed anti-sargramostim neutralizing antibodies and the myelostimulatory effect of LEUKINE was not sustained by day 155 as assessed by white blood cell count. Use LEUKINE for the shortest duration required.

6 Adverse Reactions

Immunogenicity

(subsection revised)

As with all therapeutic proteins, there is the potential for immunogenicity with

LEUKINE. The detection of antibody formation is highly dependent on the sensitivity and specificity of the assay. Additionally, the observed incidence of antibody positivity in an assay may be influenced by several factors, including assay methodology, sample handling, timing of sample collection, duration of treatment, concomitant medications, and underlying disease. For these reasons, comparison of the incidence of antibodies to sargramostim in the studies described below with the incidence of antibodies in other studies or other products may be misleading. In 214 patients with a variety of underlying diseases, neutralizing anti-sargramostim antibodies were detected in 5 patients (2.3%) after receiving LEUKINE by continuous IV infusion (3 patients) or subcutaneous injection (2 patients) for 28 to 84 days in multiple courses (as assessed by GM-CSF dependent human cell-line proliferation assay). All 5 patients had impaired hematopoiesis before the administration of LEUKINE and consequently the effect of the development of anti-sargramostim antibodies on normal hematopoiesis could not be assessed.

Antibody studies of 75 patients with Crohn's disease, with normal hematopoiesis and no other immunosuppressive drugs, receiving LEUKINE daily for 8 weeks by subcutaneous injection, showed 1 patient (1.3%) with detectable neutralizing anti-sargramostim antibodies (as assessed by GM-CSF dependent human cell-line proliferation assay).

In an experimental use trial where LEUKINE was given for an extended period, 53 patients with melanoma in complete remission (an unapproved use) received adjuvant therapy with LEUKINE 125 mcg/m2 once daily (maximum dose 250 mcg) from day 1 to 14 every 28 days for 1 year. Serum samples from patients assessed at Day 0, 2 weeks, 1 month, and 5 and/or 12 months were tested retrospectively for the presence of anti- sargramostim antibodies. Of 43 evaluable patients (having at least 3 timepoint samples post treatment), 42 (97.7%) developed anti-sargramostim binding antibody as assessed by ELISA and confirmed using an immunoprecipitation assay. Of these 42 patients, 41 had sufficient sample and were further tested: 34 patients (82.9%) developed anti- sargramostim neutralizing antibodies (as determined by a cell based luciferase reporter gene neutralizing antibody assay); 17 (50%) of these patients did not have a sustained pharmacodynamic effect of LEUKINE by day 155 as assessed by white blood cell counts This study provided limited assessment of the impact of antibody formation on the safety and efficacy of LEUKINE.

Serious allergic and anaphylactoid reactions have been reported with LEUKINE but the rate of occurrence of antibodies in such patients has not been assessed.