Belimumab versus telitacicept in sequential treatment after rituximab for refractory lupus nephritis: A real-world multicentre study
Lupus Science & Medicine, 2025;12:e001296 DOI:10.1136/lupus-2024-001296
Chen et al. demonstrated that sequential treatment with belimumab or telitacicept following rituximab (RTX) is a potential therapeutic approach for treating refractory LN. Major AEs included immunoglobin deficiency, respiratory tract infections and urinary tract infections, which are consistent with previous studies.
The study evaluated the efficacy and safety of RTX treatment followed by belimumab or telitacicept. A total of 49 patients were included in the study and were split into the belimumab group (n=35) or telitacicept group (n=14). The results showed that 81.6% of patients attained objective remission (OR) and 61.2% of patients attained renal complete response (CR). There were no statistically significant differences in OR or CR rates between the two groups.
