Pfizer vaccine prevents pneumonia in landmark study

NEW YORK—Pfizer Inc. has presented detailed results of the Community-Acquired Pneumonia Immunization Trial in Adults (CAPiTA), the landmark study of approximately 85,000 subjects, demonstrating that Prevenar 13* (pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed]) prevented a first episode of vaccine-type community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in adults 65 years of age and older, the study’s primary objective. This trial is the first in adults to clearly demonstrate a significant reduction in vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP, and importantly, non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP. Results were presented during the late-breaker session at the 9th International Symposium on Pneumococci and Pneumococcal Diseases (ISPPD) in Hyderabad, India, on March 12, 2014.

 

CAPiTA (Community-Acquired Pneumonia Immunization Trial in Adults) also met both of its secondary study objectives –significant reduction in non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type pneumococcal CAP and vaccine-type invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD).

 

Regarding the study’s primary objective, there were 45.56 percent fewer first episodes of vaccine-type CAP among Prevenar® 13-vaccinated subjects than in subjects who received placebo (P=0.0006). Regarding the study’s secondary objectives, the Prevenar 13 group experienced 45.00 percent fewer first episodes of non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type CAP (P=0.0067) and 75.00 percent fewer first episodes of vaccine-type IPD (P=0.0005) compared with the placebo group. The safety profile of Prevenar 13 in this study was consistent with studies previously conducted in adults.

 

Additional data showed reductions in vaccine-type CAP, non-bacteremic/non-invasive vaccine-type CAP, and vaccine-type IPD for up to four years after vaccination among subjects who received Prevenar 13.

 

“With the aging of the population, hospitalizations due to pneumococcal pneumonia represent a growing burden to public health systems. Evidence from this study is particularly important for a population in which age-related decline of the immune system makes it difficult to prevent disease,” said Dr. Emilio A. Emini, senior vice president, Vaccine Research and Development, Pfizer.

 

“This study demonstrated that vaccination with Prevenar 13 can prevent a significant portion of pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia in adults aged 65 and older, which is an important global public health goal,” said principal investigator Prof. Marc Bonten, professor of Molecular Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medical Microbiology, Julius Center for Health Sciences & Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands.

 

The CAPiTA study data will be an important part of any consideration of potential new or updated recommendations for Prevenar 13 in adults. Other key factors also are expected to be taken into consideration, including the current burden of pneumococcal disease in adults.

 

Prevnar 13 was licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2011 under an accelerated approval process to address an unmet medical need in older adults. As a requirement of the accelerated approval pathway, Pfizer conducted the CAPiTA study to verify clinical benefit.

 

This was a parallel-group, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, single-center trial in which subjects aged 65 years and older were randomly assigned to receive a single dose of either Prevnar 13 or placebo. A total of 84,496 subjects were enrolled. The trial was conducted by Julius Clinical, a spin-off of the Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, a division of the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands. Fifty-eight sentinel hospitals were used for the surveillance of CAP and IPD.

 

Vaccine-type CAP (VT-CAP) was defined as CAP caused by any Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype included in the vaccine. Non-bacteremic/noninvasive VT-CAP was defined as CAP in which vaccine-type S. pneumoniae caused the pneumonia, but was not detected concurrently in the bloodstream or any other normally sterile site. Vaccine-type IPD was defined as a case in which vaccine-type S. pneumoniae was present in the bloodstream or any other normally sterile site, with or without pneumonia.

 

Pneumococcal disease refers to a group of illnesses caused by S. pneumoniae bacteria.1 Invasive pneumococcal disease occurs when bacteria enter the bloodstream, or another site that is normally sterile. Non-invasive pneumococcal pneumonia occurs when the bacteria cause infection in the lungs but are not detected in the blood concurrently. In adults, pneumonia is the most common presentation of pneumococcal disease. For every one case of invasive pneumococcal pneumonia in adults, it is estimated that at least three cases of non-invasive pneumococcal pneumonia occur. While non-invasive forms of pneumococcal disease are typically more common, the invasive types of disease are generally more severe.

 

Prevenar 13 was first introduced for use in infants and young children in December 2009 in Europe and is now approved for such use in more than 120 countries worldwide, including the United States and Japan. It is the most widely used pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) in the world, and more than 640 million doses of Prevenar 7-valent/Prevenar 13 have been distributed worldwide. In addition, Prevenar 13 is approved for use in adults 50 years of age and older in more than 90 countries, and is also approved in the United States and European Union for use in older children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 years. Recently, Prevenar 13 was also approved in the EU for use in adults 18 to 49 years of age. The vaccine is approved for prevention of pneumococcal pneumonia and invasive disease caused by 13 Streptococcus pneumoniae strains (1, 3, 4, 5, 6A, 6B, 7F, 9V, 14, 18C, 19A, 19F, and 23F).

 

SOURCE: Pfizer Inc.