Mitoxantrone

INDICATIONS AND USAGE Mitoxantrone is indicated for reducing neurologic disability and/or the frequency of clinical relapses in patients with secondary (chronic) progressive, progressive relapsing, or worsening relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (i.e., patients whose neurologic status is significantly abnormal between relapses). Mitoxantrone is not indicated in the treatment of patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis. The clinical patterns of multiple sclerosis in the studies were characterized as follows: secondary progressive and progressive relapsing disease were characterized by gradual increasing disability with or without superimposed clinical relapses, and worsening relapsing-remitting disease was characterized by clinical relapses resulting in a step-wise worsening of disability. Mitoxantrone in combination with corticosteroids is indicated as initial chemotherapy for the treatment of patients with pain related to advanced hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Mitoxantrone in combination with other approved drug(s) is indicated in the initial therapy of acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (ANLL) in adults. This category includes myelogenous, promyelocytic, monocytic, and erythroid acute leukemias.

DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION ( See also WARNINGS ) Multiple Sclerosis The recommended dosage of mitoxantrone is 12 mg/m 2 given as a short (approximately 5 to 15 minutes) intravenous infusion every 3 months. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) should be evaluated by echocardiogram or MUGA prior to administration of the initial dose of mitoxantrone and all subsequent doses. In addition, LVEF evaluations are recommended if signs or symptoms of congestive heart failure develop at any time during treatment with mitoxantrone. Mitoxantrone should not be administered to multiple sclerosis patients with an LVEF <50%, with a clinically significant reduction in LVEF, or to those who have received a cumulative lifetime dose of ≥140 mg/m 2 . Complete blood counts, including platelets, should be monitored prior to each course of mitoxantrone and in the event that signs or symptoms of infection develop. Mitoxantrone generally should not be administered to multiple sclerosis patients with neutrophil counts less than 1500 cells/mm 3 . Liver function tests should also be monitored prior to each course. Mitoxantrone therapy in multiple sclerosis patients with abnormal liver function tests is not recommended because mitoxantrone clearance is reduced by hepatic impairment and no laboratory measurement can predict drug clearance and dose adjustments. Women with multiple sclerosis who are biologically capable of becoming pregnant, even if they are using birth control, should have a pregnancy test, and the results should be known, before receiving each dose of mitoxantrone (see WARNINGS, Pregnancy ). Hormone-Refractory Prostate Cancer Based on data from two Phase 3 comparative trials of mitoxantrone plus corticosteroids versus corticosteroids alone, the recommended dosage of mitoxantrone is 12 to 14 mg/m 2 given as a short intravenous infusion every 21 days. Combination Initial Therapy for ANLL in Adults For induction, the recommended dosage is 12 mg/m 2 of mitoxantrone daily on Days 1 to 3 given as an intravenous infusion, and 100 mg/m 2 of cytarabine for 7 days given as a continuous 24-hour infusion on Days 1 to 7. Most complete remissions will occur following the initial course of induction therapy. In the event of an incomplete antileukemic response, a second induction course may be given. Mitoxantrone should be given for 2 days and cytarabine for 5 days using the same daily dosage levels. If severe or life-threatening nonhematologic toxicity is observed during the first induction course, the second induction course should be withheld until toxicity resolves. Consolidation therapy which was used in two large randomized multicenter trials consisted of mitoxantrone, 12 mg/m 2 given by intravenous infusion daily on Days 1 and 2 and cytarabine, 100 mg/m 2 for 5 days given as a continuous 24-hour infusion on Days 1 to 5. The first course was given approximately 6 weeks after the final induction course; the second was generally administered 4 weeks after the first. Severe myelosuppression occurred. (See CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ) Hepatic Impairment For patients with hepatic impairment, there is at present no laboratory measurement that allows for dose adjustment recommendations. (See CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Special Populations, Hepatic Impairment ) Preparation and Administration Precautions MITOXANTRONE INJECTION, USP (CONCENTRATE) MUST BE DILUTED PRIOR TO USE. Parenteral drug products should be inspected visually for particulate matter and discoloration prior to administration whenever solution and container permit. The dose of mitoxantrone should be diluted to at least 50 mL with either 0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection (USP) or 5% Dextrose Injection (USP). Mitoxantrone Injection, USP (concentrate) may be further diluted into Dextrose 5% in Water, Normal Saline or Dextrose 5% with Normal Saline and used immediately. DO NOT FREEZE. Mitoxantrone should not be mixed in the same infusion as heparin since a precipitate may form. Because specific compatibilit…

WARNINGS WHEN MITOXANTRONE IS USED IN HIGH DOSES (> 14 mg/m 2 /d × 3 days) SUCH AS INDICATED FOR THE TREATMENT OF LEUKEMIA, SEVERE MYELOSUPPRESSION WILL OCCUR. THEREFORE, IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT MITOXANTRONE BE ADMINISTERED ONLY BY PHYSICIANS EXPERIENCED IN THE CHEMOTHERAPY OF THIS DISEASE. LABORATORY AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICES MUST BE AVAILABLE FOR HEMATOLOGIC AND CHEMISTRY MONITORING AND ADJUNCTIVE THERAPIES, INCLUDING ANTIBIOTICS. BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS MUST BE AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT PATIENTS DURING THE EXPECTED PERIOD OF MEDULLARY HYPOPLASIA AND SEVERE MYELOSUPPRESSION. PARTICULAR CARE SHOULD BE GIVEN TO ASSURING FULL HEMATOLOGIC RECOVERY BEFORE UNDERTAKING CONSOLIDATION THERAPY (IF THIS TREATMENT IS USED) AND PATIENTS SHOULD BE MONITORED CLOSELY DURING THIS PHASE. MITOXANTRONE ADMINISTERED AT ANY DOSE CAN CAUSE MYELOSUPPRESSION. CONTAINS SODIUM METABISULFITE, A SULFITE THAT MAY CAUSE ALLERGIC-TYPE REACTIONS INCLUDING ANAPHYLACTIC SYMPTOMS AND LIFE-THREATENING OR LESS SEVERE ASTHMATIC EPISODES IN CERTAIN SUSCEPTIBLE PEOPLE. THE OVERALL PREVALENCE OF SULFITE SENSITIVITY IN THE GENERAL POPULATION IS UNKNOWN AND PROBABLY LOW. SULFITE SENSITIVITY IS SEEN MORE FREQUENTLY IN ASTHMATIC THAN IN NONASTHMATIC PEOPLE. General Patients with preexisting myelosuppression as the result of prior drug therapy should not receive mitoxantrone unless it is felt that the possible benefit from such treatment warrants the risk of further medullary suppression. The safety of Mitoxantrone Injection, USP (concentrate) in patients with hepatic insufficiency is not established (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY ). Safety for use by routes other than intravenous administration has not been established. Mitoxantrone is not indicated for subcutaneous, intramuscular, or intra-arterial injection. There have been reports of local/regional neuropathy, some irreversible, following intra-arterial injection. Mitoxantrone must not be given by intrathecal injection. There have been reports of neuropathy and neurotoxicity, both central and peripheral, following intrathecal injection. These reports have included seizures leading to coma and severe neurologic sequelae, and paralysis with bowel and bladder dysfunction. Topoisomerase II inhibitors, including mitoxantrone, have been associated with the development of secondary acute myeloid leukemia and myelosuppression. Cardiac Effects Because of the possible danger of cardiac effects in patients previously treated with daunorubicin or doxorubicin, the benefit-to-risk ratio of mitoxantrone therapy in such patients should be determined before starting therapy. Functional cardiac changes including decreases in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and irreversible congestive heart failure can occur with mitoxantrone. Cardiac toxicity may be more common in patients with prior treatment with anthracyclines, prior mediastinal radiotherapy, or with preexisting cardiovascular disease. Such patients should have regular cardiac monitoring of LVEF from the initiation of therapy. Cancer patients who received cumulative doses of 140 mg/m 2 either alone or in combination with other chemotherapeutic agents had a cumulative 2.6% probability of clinical congestive heart failure. In comparative oncology trials, the overall cumulative probability rate of moderate or severe decreases in LVEF at this dose was 13%. Multiple Sclerosis Changes in cardiac function may occur in patients with multiple sclerosis treated with mitoxantrone. In one controlled trial (Study 1, see CLINICAL TRIALS, Multiple Sclerosis ), two patients (2%) of 127 receiving mitoxantrone, one receiving a 5 mg/m 2 dose and the other receiving the 12 mg/m 2 dose, had LVEF values that decreased to below 50%. An additional patient receiving 12 mg/m 2 , who did not have LVEF measured, had a decrease in another echocardiographic measurement of ventricular function (fractional shortening) that led to discontinuation from the trial (see ADVERSE REACTIONS, Multiple Sclerosis ). There we…

CONTRAINDICATIONS Mitoxantrone is contraindicated in patients who have demonstrated prior hypersensitivity to it.

Drug Interactions Mitoxantrone and its metabolites are excreted in bile and urine, but it is not known whether the metabolic or excretory pathways are saturable, may be inhibited or induced, or if mitoxantrone and its metabolites undergo enterohepatic circulation. To date, post-marketing experience has not revealed any significant drug interactions in patients who have received mitoxantrone for treatment of cancer. Information on drug interactions in patients with multiple sclerosis is limited. Following concurrent administration of mitoxantrone with corticosteroids, no evidence of drug interactions has been observed.

Pregnancy (see WARNINGS ).

Nursing Mothers Mitoxantrone is excreted in human milk and significant concentrations (18 ng/mL) have been reported for 28 days after the last administration. Because of the potential for serious adverse reactions in infants from mitoxantrone, breast feeding should be discontinued before starting treatment.

ADVERSE REACTIONS Multiple Sclerosis Mitoxantrone has been administered to 149 patients with multiple sclerosis in two randomized clinical trials, including 21 patients who received mitoxantrone in combination with corticosteroids. In Study 1, the proportion of patients who discontinued treatment due to an adverse event was 9.7% (n = 6) in the 12 mg/m 2 mitoxantrone arm (leukopenia, depression, decreased LV function, bone pain and emesis, renal failure, and one discontinuation to prevent future complications from repeated urinary tract infections) compared to 3.1% (n = 2) in the placebo arm (hepatitis and myocardial infarction). The following clinical adverse experiences were significantly more frequent in the mitoxantrone groups: nausea, alopecia, urinary tract infection, and menstrual disorders, including amenorrhea. Table 4a summarizes clinical adverse events of all intensities occurring in ≥5% of patients in either dose group of mitoxantrone and that were numerically greater on drug than on placebo in Study 1. The majority of these events were of mild to moderate intensity, and nausea was the only adverse event that occurred with severe intensity in more than one patient (three patients [5%] in the 12 mg/m 2 group). Of note, alopecia consisted of mild hair thinning. Two of the 127 patients treated with mitoxantrone in Study 1 had decreased LVEF to below 50% at some point during the 2 years of treatment. An additional patient receiving 12 mg/m 2 did not have LVEF measured, but had another echocardiographic measure of ventricular function (fractional shortening) that led to discontinuation from the study. Table 4a: Adverse Events of Any Intensity Occurring in ≥ 5% of Patients on Any Dose of Mitoxantrone and That Were Numerically Greater Than in the Placebo Group Study 1 Percent of Patients Preferred Term Placebo (N = 64) 5 mg/m 2 Mitoxantrone (N = 65) 12 mg/m 2 Mitoxantrone (N = 62) Nausea 20 55 76 Alopecia 31 38 61 Menstrual disorder Percentage of female patients. 26 51 61 Amenorrhea 3 28 43 Upper respiratory tract infection 52 51 53 Urinary tract infection 13 29 32 Stomatitis 8 15 19 Arrhythmia 8 6 18 Diarrhea 11 25 16 Urine abnormal 6 5 11 ECG abnormal 3 5 11 Constipation 6 14 10 Back pain 5 6 8 Sinusitis 2 3 6 Headache 5 6 6 The proportion of patients experiencing any infection during Study 1 was 67% for the placebo group, 85% for the 5 mg/m 2 group, and 81% for the 12 mg/m 2 group. However, few of these infections required hospitalization: one placebo patient (tonsillitis), three 5 mg/m 2 patients (enteritis, urinary tract infection, viral infection), and four 12 mg/m 2 patients (tonsillitis, urinary tract infection [two], endometritis). Table 4b summarizes laboratory abnormalities that occurred in ≥ 5% of patients in either mitoxantrone dose group, and that were numerically more frequent than in the placebo group. Table 4b: Laboratory Abnormalities Occurring in ≥ 5% of Patients Assessed using World Health Organization (WHO) toxicity criteria. on Either Dose of Mitoxantrone and That Were More Frequent Than in the Placebo Group Study 1 Percent of Patients Event Placebo (N = 64) 5 mg/m 2 Mitoxantrone (N = 65) 12 mg/m 2 Mitoxantrone (N = 62) Leukopenia < 4000 cells/mm 3 0 9 19 Gamma-GT increased 3 3 15 SGOT increased 8 9 8 Granulocytopenia < 2000 cells/mm 3 2 6 6 Anemia 2 9 6 SGPT increased 3 6 5 There was no difference among treatment groups in the incidence or severity of hemorrhagic events. In Study 2, mitoxantrone was administered once a month. Clinical adverse events most frequently reported in the mitoxantrone group included amenorrhea (53% of female patients), alopecia (33% of patients), nausea (29% of patients), and asthenia (24% of patients). Tables 5a and 5b respectively summarize adverse events and laboratory abnormalities occurring in > 5% of patients in the mitoxantrone group and numerically more frequent than in the control group. Table 5a: Adverse Events of Any Intensity Occurring in > 5% of Patients Assesse…