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Review
. 2017 Oct 24;19(1):239.
doi: 10.1186/s13075-017-1445-3.

Right drug, right patient, right time: aspiration or future promise for biologics in rheumatoid arthritis?

Vasco C Romão  1   2 , Edward M Vital  3   4 , João Eurico Fonseca  1   2 , Maya H Buch  5   6
Affiliations
Review

Right drug, right patient, right time: aspiration or future promise for biologics in rheumatoid arthritis?

Vasco C Romão et al. Arthritis Res Ther. .

Abstract

Individualising biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) to maximise outcomes and deliver safe and cost-effective care is a key goal in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Investigation to identify predictive tools of bDMARD response is a highly active and prolific area of research. In addition to clinical phenotyping, cellular and molecular characterisation of synovial tissue and blood in patients with RA, using different technologies, can facilitate predictive testing. This narrative review will summarise the literature for the available bDMARD classes and focus on where progress has been made. We will also look ahead and consider the increasing use of 'omics' technologies, the potential they hold as well as the challenges, and what is needed in the future to fully realise our ambition of personalised bDMARD treatment.

Keywords: Biological therapy; Biomarkers; Personalised therapy; Response predictors; Rheumatoid arthritis.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

VCR has received speaker’s and/or consulting fees from Bayer, Hospira, Merck Sharp and Dohme, Pfizer and Roche. EMV has received honoraria from Roche and GSK, and has received research grants paid to his employer from Roche and AstraZeneca. JEF has received research grants from Abbott, Merck Sharp and Dohme, Pfizer, Roche and UCB Pharma, and has received speaker’s fees and/or consulting fees from Abbvie, Merck Sharp and Dohme, Pfizer, Roche and UCB Pharma. MHB has received research grants paid to her employer from Pfizer Ltd and Roche pharmaceuticals, and has received consulting fees for expert advice from Abbvie, Astra-Zeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Lilly, Roche pharmaceuticals and Sandoz.

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