Switching between enzyme replacement therapies (ERT) and substrate reduction therapies (SRT) in patients with type 1 Gaucher disease (GD1) is not uncommon; however, the reasons for switchng treatments have not been explored in detail. Data from the Gaucher Outcome Survey (GOS), an international registry for patients with confirmed GD, were used to evaluate the reasons for, and consequences of, switching between these treatment types. Of the 1843 patients enrolled in GOS on 25 February 2020, 245 had undergone a treatment switch: 222 from initial ERT to SRT (of whom 88 later switched back to ERT) and 23 from initial SRT to ERT. The most common reasons for ERT-SRT switching were duration of infusion (25.4%), drug shortage (22.0%), and adverse events (AEs; 11.9%), and for SRT-ERT switching, AEs (63.6%), lack of beneficial effect (16.4%), and participation in a clinical trial (9.1%). Bodyweight and hematologic parameters largely remained stable before and after switching between ERT and SRT, although with substantial variation between patients. These findings contribute to understanding why treatment switching occurs in patients with GD, and may help physicians recognize the real-world impact of treatment switching between ERT and SRT for patients with GD.
Keywords: Gaucher disease; enzyme replacement therapy; substrate reduction therapy; treatment switch.