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Watson JA, Commons RJ, Tarning J, Simpson JA, Llanos Cuentas A, Lacerda MVG, Green JA, Koh GCKW, Chu CS, Nosten FH, Price RN, Day NPJ, White NJ. Response to comment on 'The clinical pharmacology of tafenoquine in the radical cure of Plasmodium vivax malaria: An individual patient data meta-analysis'. eLife 2024; 13:e91283. [PMID: 38323801 PMCID: PMC10849674 DOI: 10.7554/elife.91283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
In our recent paper on the clinical pharmacology of tafenoquine (Watson et al., 2022), we used all available individual patient pharmacometric data from the tafenoquine pre-registration clinical efficacy trials to characterise the determinants of anti-relapse efficacy in tropical vivax malaria. We concluded that the currently recommended dose of tafenoquine (300 mg in adults, average dose of 5 mg/kg) is insufficient for cure in all adults, and a 50% increase to 450 mg (7.5 mg/kg) would halve the risk of vivax recurrence by four months. We recommended that clinical trials of higher doses should be carried out to assess their safety and tolerability. Sharma and colleagues at the pharmaceutical company GSK defend the currently recommended adult dose of 300 mg as the optimum balance between radical curative efficacy and haemolytic toxicity (Sharma et al., 2024). We contend that the relative haemolytic risks of the 300 mg and 450 mg doses have not been sufficiently well characterised to justify this opinion. In contrast, we provided evidence that the currently recommended 300 mg dose results in sub-maximal efficacy, and that prospective clinical trials of higher doses are warranted to assess their risks and benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- James A Watson
- Oxford University Clinical Research Unit, Hospital for Tropical DiseasesHo Chi MinhViet Nam
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance NetworkOxfordUnited Kingdom
| | - Robert J Commons
- WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance NetworkOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Global Health Division, Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin UniversityDarwinAustralia
| | - Joel Tarning
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol UniversityBangkokThailand
| | - Julie A Simpson
- Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of MelbourneMelbourneAustralia
| | - Alejandro Llanos Cuentas
- Unit of Leishmaniasis and Malaria, Instituto de Medicina Tropical “Alexander von Humboldt”, Universidad Peruana Cayetano HerediaSan Martín de PorresPeru
| | | | | | - Gavin CKW Koh
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Northwick Park HospitalHarrowUnited Kingdom
| | - Cindy S Chu
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Shoklo Malaria Research UnitMae SotThailand
| | - François H Nosten
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Shoklo Malaria Research UnitMae SotThailand
| | - Richard N Price
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance NetworkOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Global Health Division, Menzies School of Health Research, Charles Darwin UniversityDarwinAustralia
| | - Nicholas PJ Day
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol UniversityBangkokThailand
| | - Nicholas J White
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol UniversityBangkokThailand
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