Tocilizumab: an effective treatment for relapsing giant cell arteritis

Objective. Patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA) often respond to corticosteroid (CS) therapy; however, the majority of patients relapse when CS therapy is tapered or withdrawn. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of tocilizumab (TCZ) in patients with relapsing GCA. Methods. Four patients with relapsing GCA received TCZ monthly (4mg/kg or 8mg/kg). Disease activity and drug tolerability were evaluated clinically and via laboratory test results at the beginning of the study and every 3 months until the publication of this study. All four patients were still receiving TCZ monthly at the time of manuscript submission. Results. All four patients treated with TCZ achieved clinical and laboratory response. No adverse events were detected. Conclusion. In our small case series, TCZ was efficacious and well tolerated in patients with relapsing GCA. Proper randomised controlled trials are required to achieve confident conclusions regarding the safety and efficacy of TCZ in GCA.