Clinical Study to Compare the Efficacy and Safety of Macitentan and Tadalafil Monotherapies With the Corresponding Fixed-dose Combination Therapy in Subjects With Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) (A DUE)
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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03904693 |
Recruitment Status :
Recruiting
First Posted : April 5, 2019
Last Update Posted : February 17, 2021
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Combination therapy in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) has been the subject of active investigation for more than a decade, with the benefit of targeting different pathways known to be involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. Adherence to prescribed therapy has an impact on clinical outcomes. Reducing the pill/tablet count and frequency has a major impact on patients' adherence to therapies and therefore the observed clinical outcomes. One way to simplify treatment is to use fixed-dose combination (FDC) products that combine multiple treatments targeting different pathways into a single tablet.
This study aims to demonstrate that the FDC of macitentan and tadalafil is more effective than therapy with 10 mg of macitentan alone or 40 mg of tadalafil alone. This phase 3 study will evaluate the efficacy and safety at 16 weeks of an FDC (macitentan 10 mg and tadalafil 40 mg) against these two PAH-approved therapies given as monotherapy to further confirm the added value of the FDC.
Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
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Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) (WHO Group 1 PH) | Drug: FDC macitentan/tadalafil Drug: Macitentan 10 mg Drug: Tadalafil 40 mg Drug: Placebo FDC Drug: Placebo macitentan Drug: Placebo tadalafil | Phase 3 |
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Estimated Enrollment : | 170 participants |
Allocation: | Randomized |
Intervention Model: | Parallel Assignment |
Intervention Model Description: | In total, approximately 170 subjects are planned to be randomized into study to receive either FDC macitentan/tadalafil or macitentan 10 mg or tadalafil 40 mg given once daily (o.d.). Subjects will also receive matching placebos for the two other study treatments to maintain the masking ('blind'). Treatment allocation will be stratified based on prior PAH therapy ( i.e., treatment-naïve or treated by an Endothelin receptor antagonist [ERA] or a Phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor [PDE-5i] as a monotherapy) at baseline. Sample size will be re-estimated at interim analysis if study is not terminated early for efficacy/futility up to sample size of 120 to 250. After completion of double-blind treatment period, subjects will continue the study in an open-label treatment period for 24 months, during which all subjects will receive FDC macitentan/tadalafil. All assessments at end of double-blind treatment (EDBT) must be completed before subject enters open-label treatment (OLT) period. |
Masking: | Quadruple (Participant, Care Provider, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | Prospective, Multi-center, Double-blind, Randomized, Active-controlled, Triple-dummy, Parallel-group, Group-sequential, Adaptive Phase 3 Clinical Study to Compare the Efficacy and Safety of Macitentan and Tadalafil Monotherapies With the Corresponding Fixed Dose Combination in Subjects With Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH), Followed by an Open-label Treatment Period With Macitentan and Tadalafil Fixed Dose Combination Therapy |
Actual Study Start Date : | July 29, 2019 |
Estimated Primary Completion Date : | December 15, 2023 |
Estimated Study Completion Date : | August 17, 2024 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
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Experimental: FDC therapy + Placebo macitentan + Placebo tadalafil
Subjects to receive FDC macitentan/tadalafil (macitentan 10 mg and tadalafil 40 mg) plus matching placebos for the two other study treatments.
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Drug: FDC macitentan/tadalafil
Film-coated tablet with 10 mg macitentan and 40 mg tadalafil, to be administered orally once daily.
Other Name: ACT-064992D Drug: Placebo macitentan Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. Drug: Placebo tadalafil Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. |
Active Comparator: Macitentan mono-therapy + Placebo tadalafil + Placebo FDC
Subjects to receive macitentan 10 mg plus matching placebos for the two other study treatments.
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Drug: Macitentan 10 mg
Film-coated tablet with 10 mg macitentan, to be administered orally once daily.
Other Name: ACT-064992 Drug: Placebo FDC Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. Drug: Placebo tadalafil Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. |
Active Comparator: Tadalafil mono-therapy + Placebo macitentan + Placebo FDC
Subjects to receive tadalafil 40 mg (2 x 20 mg) plus matching placebos for the two other study treatments.
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Drug: Tadalafil 40 mg
Film-coated tablet with 40 mg tadalafil (2 x 20 mg tablets), to be administered orally once daily. Drug: Placebo FDC Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. Drug: Placebo macitentan Matching placebo not containing any active substance but otherwise identical in appearance to the respective active drug tablet, to be administered orally once daily. |
- Change in Pulmonary Vascular Resistance (PVR) expressed as the ratio of geometric means of End of Double-Blind Treatment (EDBT) to baseline [ Time Frame: From baseline to EDBT (Week 16) ]PVR is the resistance in the pulmonary vasculature that has to be overcome to push blood from the right side of the heart to the lungs. PVR measured by Right Heart Catheterization (RHC) has diagnostic and prognostic value as well as offers an objective judgement on treatment response and efficacy.
- Change in 6-minute walk distance (6MWD) from baseline to EDBT [ Time Frame: From baseline to EDBT (Week 16) ]The purpose of the six-minute walk test (6MWT) is to quantify exercise tolerance and capacity. This standardized test measures the distance an individual is able to walk over a total of six minutes on a hard, flat surface. The goal is for the individual to walk as far as possible in six minutes. This endpoint is associated with prognosis and clinical outcomes such as improvement of hemodynamics.
- Change From Baseline in Cardiopulmonary Symptom Domain Score in PAH-SYMPACT to Week 16 [ Time Frame: From Baseline to Week 16 ]Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension-Symptoms and Impact (PAH-SYMPACT) is a PAH-specific patient-reported outcomes instrument that quantifies PAH symptoms and impacts. The Symptom part is a daily diary that contains 11 items. The respondent is asked to rate each of the items for the past 24 hours. The response options for each item range from 0 " "no [symptom] at all" to 4 "very severe".
- Change From Baseline in Cardiovascular Symptom Domain Score in PAH-SYMPACT to Week 16 [ Time Frame: From Baseline to Week 16 ]PAH-SYMPACT is a PAH-specific patient-reported outcomes instrument that quantifies PAH symptoms and impacts. The Symptom part is a daily diary that contains 11 items. The respondent is asked to rate each of the items for the past 24 hours. The response options for each item range from 0 " "no [symptom] at all" to 4 "very severe".
- Proportion of subjects with absence of worsening in World Health Organization (WHO) Functional Class (FC) from baseline to EDBT. [ Time Frame: From baseline to EDBT (Week 16) ]WHO FC reflects the severity of a PAH patient's symptoms and the impact of these symptoms on their activities of daily life. WHO FC is directly associated with prognosis and improvement in WHO FC correlates with survival in subjects with PAH.

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 18 Years and older (Adult, Older Adult) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | All |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | No |
Inclusion Criteria:
- Signed and dated informed consent form (ICF)
- Confirmed diagnosis of symptomatic PAH in WHO FC II or III
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Symptomatic PAH belonging to one of the following subgroups of WHO Group 1 pulmonary hypertension:
- Idiopathic
- Heritable
- Drug- or toxin-induced
- Associated with connective tissue disease, HIV infection, portal hypertension or congenital heart disease with simple systemic-to-pulmonary shunt with persistent pulmonary hypertension documented by a right heart catheterization (RHC) ≥ 1 year after surgical repair
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PAH diagnosis confirmed by hemodynamic evaluation at rest (through central reading), evaluated within 5 weeks prior to randomization:
- Mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) ≥ 25 mmHg, AND
- Pulmonary artery wedge pressure (PAWP) or left ventricular end diastolic pressure (LVEDP) ≤ 15 mmHg, AND
- Pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) ≥ 3 WU (i.e., ≥ 240 dyn∙sec∙cm-5)
- Negative vasoreactivity test in idiopathic, heritable, and drug/toxin-induced PAH. (Participants for whom no vasoreactivity test was performed at diagnosis can be eligible if currently treated with PAH therapy for more than 3 months and PAH diagnosis confirmed by hemodynamic evaluation at least 3 months after introduction of their PAH therapy).
- Neither no history of PAH-specific treatment or currently receiving a stable dose of ERA or PDE-5i monotherapy for at least 3 months prior to baseline RHC, within the specified doses in the study protocol
- Subject able to perform the 6MWT with a minimum distance of 100 m and maximum distance of 450 m at Screening
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A woman of childbearing potential must:
- have negative serum pregnancy test at Screening and a negative urine pregnancy test at Randomization
- agree to undertake monthly urine pregnancy tests during the study and up to at least 30 days after study treatment discontinuation
- agree to follow the contraception scheme from Screening up to at least 30 days after study treatment discontinuation
Exclusion Criteria:
- Treatment with a soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator, L-arginine, any form of prostanoids or prostacyclin-receptor agonists (including oral, inhaled, or infused routes) in the 3-month period prior to start of treatment
- Treatment with combination therapy of ERA and PDE-5i in the 3-month period prior to start of treatment or history of intolerance to ERA and PDE-5i combination therapy
- Hypersensitivity to any of the study treatments or any excipient of their formulations
- Treatment with a strong cytochrome P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) inducer in the 1-month period prior to start of treatment
- Treatment with a strong CYP3A4 inhibitor or a moderate dual CYP3A4/CYP2C9 inhibitor or co-administration of a combination of moderate CYP3A4 and moderate CYP2C9 inhibitors in the 1-month period prior to start of treatment
- Treatment with doxazosin
- Treatment with any form of organic nitrate, either regularly or intermittently
- Diuretic treatment initiated or dose changed within 1 week prior to the RHC or start of treatment
- Treatment with another investigational drug in the 3-month period prior to start of treatment
- Body mass index (BMI) > 40 kg/m2 at Screening
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Known presence of three or more of the following risk factors for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction at Screening:
- BMI > 30 kg/m2
- Diabetes mellitus of any type
- Essential hypertension (even if well controlled)
- Coronary artery disease, i.e. history of stable angina or known more than 50% stenosis in a coronary artery or history of myocardial infarction or history of or planned coronary artery bypass grafting and/or coronary artery stenting
- Known presence of moderate or severe obstructive lung disease any time prior to Screening as specified in study protocol
- Known presence of moderate or severe restrictive lung disease any time prior to Screening as specified in study protocol
- Clinically significant aortic or mitral valve disease; pericardial constriction; restrictive or congestive left-sided cardiomyopathy; life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias; significant left ventricular dysfunction; or left ventricular outflow obstruction, in the opinion of the investigator
- Known permanent atrial fibrillation, in the opinion of the investigator
- Known or suspected uncontrolled thyroid disease (hypo- or hyperthyroidism)
- Documented pulmonary veno-occlusive disease
- Hemoglobin < 100 g/L (<10 g/dL) at Screening
- Known severe hepatic impairment as specified in study protocol
- Serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and/or alanine aminotransferase (ALT) > 1.5 × upper limit of normal (ULN) at Screening
- Severe renal impairment at Screening as specified in study protocol
- Systemic hypotension at Screening or Randomization and systemic hypertension at Screening as specified in study protocol
- Acute myocardial infarction or cerebrovascular event (e.g., stroke) within the last 26 weeks prior to Screening
- Known bleeding disorder, in the opinion of the investigator
- Loss of vision in one or both eyes because of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy
- Hereditary degenerative retinal disorders, including retinitis pigmentosa
- Difficulty swallowing large pills/tablets that would interfere with the ability to comply with study treatment regimen
- Any planned surgical intervention (including organ transplant) during the double-blind treatment period, except minor interventions
- Exercise training program for cardiopulmonary rehabilitation in the 12-week period prior to start of treatment, or planned to be started during the double-blind period of the study
- Pregnant, planning to become pregnant or lactating
- Any known factor or disease that might interfere with treatment adherence, full participation in the study or interpretation of the results as judged by the investigator (e.g., drug or alcohol dependence etc.)

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT03904693
Contact: Study Contact | 844-434-4210 | JNJ.CT@sylogent.com |

Study Director: | Wassim Fares, MD | Actelion |
Responsible Party: | Actelion |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT03904693 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
AC-077A301 2014-004786-25 ( EudraCT Number ) AC-077A301 ( Other Identifier: Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd ) |
First Posted: | April 5, 2019 Key Record Dates |
Last Update Posted: | February 17, 2021 |
Last Verified: | February 2021 |
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement: | |
Plan to Share IPD: | Yes |
Plan Description: | The data sharing policy of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson is available at www.janssen.com/clinical-trials\transparency. As noted on this site, requests for access to the study data can be submitted through Yale Open Data Access (YODA) Project site at yoda.yale.edu. |
URL: | https://www.janssen.com/clinical-trials/transparency |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product: | Yes |
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product: | No |
Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension PAH macitentan tadalafil fixed dose combination therapy |
Familial Primary Pulmonary Hypertension Hypertension Vascular Diseases Cardiovascular Diseases Hypertension, Pulmonary Lung Diseases Respiratory Tract Diseases Tadalafil Macitentan |
Vasodilator Agents Phosphodiesterase 5 Inhibitors Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors Enzyme Inhibitors Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action Urological Agents Endothelin A Receptor Antagonists Endothelin Receptor Antagonists Endothelin B Receptor Antagonists |