Characterisation of patients with antifibrotic-treated non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis progressive pulmonary fibrosis: a retrospective real-life study.

OBJECTIVE: Nintedanib is approved for the treatment of interstitial lung disease (ILD) with progressive pulmonary fibrosis (PPF). Real-life data on nintedanib treatment for this indication and on the combined use of antifibrotic and immunomodulatory drugs are limited. This study was aimed to collect detailed real-life data from all patients with non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) PPF at the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa to identify the gap between patients included in randomised controlled trials and real-life patients. DESIGN AND SETTING: This retrospective, real-life study characterised all patients with non-IPF PPF diagnosed and treated at the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one patients were identified as having non-IPF fibrotic ILD and meeting the PPF criteria in 2022 and 2023. RESULTS: The most common diagnosis was connective tissue disease-ILDs, with 13 patients (42%), followed by fibrotic idiopathic non-specific interstitial pneumonia (iNSIP), with 10 (32%) patients. The most common radiological pattern was NSIP in 18 (58%) patients.Among the 30 patients treated with nintedanib, six (20%) had to permanently discontinue treatment owing to side effects. Of the 19 patients who continued to receive nintedanib at the end of the follow-up period and for whom the dose was known, 9 (47%) continued to receive nintedanib at the full dose (150 mg two times per day) and 10 (53%) at the reduced dose (100 mg two times per day). Twenty-seven (87%) patients received immunomodulatory treatment at the time of PPF. CONCLUSIONS: In our cohort, the underlying diagnoses and immunomodulatory treatments received significantly differed from those in the phase III licensing trial. More patients received nintedanib at a reduced dose than at a full dose, despite limited evidence of its efficacy and effectiveness. This highlights the large gap in evidence and the need for additional real-world data.