Early Phase Study to Assess Efficacy and Safety of AZD9567 Versus Prednisolone in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis

This is a phase 2a study to be run in 2-3 countries in European Union involving 5-6 sites. It will enroll approximately 80 patients to ensure 40 randomized with active rheumatoid arthritis. The treatment period is 2 weeks and total study duration per patient is approximately 1 month. The study drugs are AZD9567 40 mg (an oral SGRM) and the comparator is prednisolone 20mg. The primary endpoint is DAS28 including evaluation of 28 joints and C-reactive protein. Safety parameters will also be evaluated and a biomarker program is included for future research.

This randomized double blind with double dummy technique phase 2a study will be run in 2-3 EU countries, most likely Sweden, Denmark and The Netherlands involving 5-6 sites. It is estimated that 80-100 patients have to be enrolled to ensure the randomization target of 40. The study population is patients with rheumatoid arthritis on stable treatment with conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) with an active flare. It is a two-arm parallel study and the randomization ratio is 1:1 to the two weeks of once daily treatment of 40 mg of AZD9567 and 20 mg prednisolone.

The primary objective is to assess the efficacy of AZD9567 40 mg, compared to prednisolone 20 mg in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis in spite of stable treatment with conventional and/or s.c/i.v. biological DMARDs and the primary variable is change from baseline in 28 joint Disease Activity Score using CRP (DAS28 - CRP). As secondary variables swollen and tenderness of 66-68 joints and safety variables are also included. For exploratively purposes there is also a biomarker program, collecting blood samples for future research.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

1. Established RA diagnosis according to the 2010 American College of Rheumatology (ACR)/EULAR classification or the 1987 criteria
2. Active RA (DAS28-CRP score ≥ 3.2) with at least 3 swollen joints and 3 tender joints using the DAS28 joint count
3. Patients must have be on stable dosing of conventional and/or s.c./i.v biological DMARDs for the last 8 weeks prior to Visit 1
4. CRP levels \>5mg/L at screening if seronegative for Rheumatoid Factor (RF) and Anti-Cyclic Citrullinated Peptide antibody (anti-CCP Ab), or \>2mg/L if seropositive for either marker
5. BMI between 18 and 35 (inclusive)
6. Negative pregnancy test (serum) for female subjects of childbearing potential

Exclusion Criteria:

1. History or current inflammatory rheumatic disease other than RA (secondary Sjogren's syndrome excluded)
2. History or current clinically important disease which may either put the subject at risk because of participation in the study, or influence the results or the subject's ability to participate in the study
3. Any clinical contraindications to treatment with steroids
4. Oral or parenteral steroids (beyond study medication) 8 weeks prior to study start and during the study. Stable use and dose of topical and inhaled steroids for longer than 4 w prior to randomization is acceptable
5. Use of any prohibited medication during the study or if the required washout time of such medication was not adhered to
6. History of severe allergy/hypersensitivity or ongoing clinically important allergy/hypersensitivity to drugs with a similar class to study drugs
7. Any concomitant medications that are known to be associated with Torsades de Pointes