Rheumatoid Arthritis Clinical Trials in Pittsburgh, PA

This phase Ib trial studies the side effects of nivolumab and to see how well it works in treating patients with autoimmune disorders and cancer that has spread to other places in the body or cannot removed by surgery. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as nivolumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Read Less

The 2021 ACR RA treatment guideline, based on widely acknowledged low to moderate quality evidence, recommends switching to a non-tumor necrosis factor (TNFi) biologic (choose among existing medications, currently, rituximab, abatacept, tocilizumab, or sarilumab) or a targeted synthetic DMARD arm (tsDMARD; choose among existing medications, currently, tofacitinib, baricitinib, upadacitinib) in patients with active RA despite the use of a TNFi-biologic. In practice, most patients receive another TNFi-biologic, i.e., a second TNFi-biologic first. This is not based on solid evidence, but on arbitrary algorithms often proposed by health insurance plans, and/or physician experience and habit (TNFis launched 22 yrs ago vs. the first tsDMARD 8 years ago vs. first non-TNF-biologic launched 17 years ago). This study will fill a critical knowledge gap by generating CER data for important PROs between these treatment options, switching to a non-TNFi biologic or a tsDMARD in patients with active RA despite the use of a TNFi-biologic. Read Less