Introduction: With an annual incidence of 0.7 – 2.4 per million, Cushing's disease (CD) is a rare
but devastating disease caused by an adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secreting
pituitary adenoma. CD is associated with severe morbidity and mortality and most commonly
affects adults aged 20 – 50, primarily females. Pituitary resection of the adenoma
is the current first-line therapy for CD, but surgical failure rates are as high as
25 – 30%. Pasireotide (SOM230), a novel somatostatin analogue, exhibits a unique binding
profile with high affinity to four of the five known human somatostatin receptor subtypes
(sstr1, 2, 3 and 5) and is approved for pharmacological treatment of CD in the EU
and U.S. for those patients for whom surgery has failed or is not an option. A phase
III study [CSOM230B2305] showed efficacy of pasireotide s.c. in reducing and normalising
hypercortisolism. However, since duration and patient numbers are limited, long-term
effects could not be fully addressed.
Objective: The primary objective of this non-interventional study [CSOM230B2410] is therefore
to document the long-term safety and tolerability profile of pasireotide s.c. in patients
with CD in a real life setting.
Design: This multinational, multi-center post-marketing observational study does not impose
a therapy protocol, diagnostic/therapeutic interventions or a visit schedule. Patients
≥18 years with a diagnosis of Cushing's disease and treated with pasireotide s.c.
alone or in combination with other therapies will be monitored over a period of 3
years. Treatment is performed according to the investigator's judgment and local prescribing
information. All adverse events as well as available demographic, medical history
and current medical data will be documented at patients' visits to their site. Additionally,
efficacy data will be collected and for documentation of changes in health-related
quality of life, patient-reported outcome questionnaires (Cushing QoL, EURO QoL) are
available.