Limitations of standard immunosuppressive treatment in ANCA-associated vasculitis and lupus nephritis

Abstract

Introduction of the standard immunosuppressive treatment has dramatically changed the outcome of patients with both ANCA-associated vasculitis and lupus nephritis, transforming them from incurable diseases with very high short-term mortality to chronic debilitating diseases with much lower short-term, but still relatively high long-term, morbidity/mortality. Long-term morbidity with damage accumulating partly due to the adverse events of the available treatment (namely gonadal toxicity, malignancy, bone disease, cataracts, diabetes, and thromboembolic and cardiovascular disease) has become a major concern. Although cyclophosphamide-based regimens have been partly replaced by newer agents in both ANCA-associated vasculitis and lupus nephritis (namely rituximab or mycophenolate, respectively) their short-term and medium-term adverse events may not be significantly less frequent and we can only hope that new treatments will translate into better long-term outcomes including better long-term safety.