Background: Isavuconazole use in the real-world setting has not been extensively described. Subgroups of patients with particular prognostic significance, such as previous triazole prophylaxis or treatment and the important subgroup treated empirically for invasive fungal infection, have beforehand been excluded from trials.
Objectives: We aimed to determine treatment response and safety in these patients at a large US transplant and cancer centre.
Patients/methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all adult inpatients administered ≥3 doses of isavuconazole between June 2015 and October 2017.
Results: Ninety-one adults were identified. Six (7%) received primary prophylaxis, 10 (11%) treatment then secondary prophylaxis and 75 (82%) treatment only. Overall treatment response was 62%. Six-week mortality was 24%. Sixty-three per cent of 32 patients treated with isavuconaozle following prophylaxis with another antifungal agent exhibited a treatment response. Among 49 patients switched from treatment with another agent, 53% had a treatment response. Thirty-four patients received isavuconazole empirically, and 65% demonstrated a treatment response. Individuals given isavuconazole prophylaxis developed no breakthrough invasive fungal infections. One patient discontinued isavuconazole due to hepatotoxicity.
Conclusions: Real-world isavuconazole use appears safe and is associated with treatment responses in varied patients including critically important subgroups previously unreported.
Keywords: Aspergillus; antifungals; isavuconazole; mucormycosis; triazoles.
© 2019 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.