Lupus drug may be stopped in seniors without flare risk, study tests
NCT ID NCT05799378
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 21, 2026 · Updated 4 times
Summary
This study looks at whether people aged 60 and older with stable lupus can safely stop taking hydroxychloroquine, a common medication that can cause eye damage over time. About 330 participants will either continue the drug or switch to a placebo and be monitored for one year. The goal is to see if stopping the drug leads to disease flares, helping doctors balance the risks of eye side effects against lupus symptoms.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 3
Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.
- Participants
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About 330 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2024
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2029
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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55 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Provision of signed and dated informed consent form * Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study * Age ≥ 55 years at time of enrollment * Normal OCT and VF assessment within 6 months of screening visit * Ability to take oral medication * Have established SLE (≥ 4 ACR criteria or SLICC criteria or ≥ 10 points by EULAR criteria, SLE diagnosed at least seven years ago) * Stable disease at screening visit by attaining DORIS remission (meeting all criterion listed below) and not on any immunosuppressants. * Criterion 1: Clinical SLEDAI= 0 * Criterion 2: SELENA-SLEDAI PGA ≤ 0.5 (on a scale from 0-3, where 0 is no disease activity and 3 is maximum disease activity) * Criterion 3: Current prednisolone (or equivalent corticosteroid) dose ≤ 5 mg daily * No moderate or severe flares one year prior to screening * Taking ≥ 200 HCQ daily for ≥ 7 years Exclusion Criteria: * Any patient that does not attain stable disease status by DORIS * Ophthalmologic evidence of retinopathy (these patients would be advised to discontinue HCQ and therefore unethical to randomize for this study) * Clinical SLEDAI \> 0 * Taking \> 5 mg/day prednisone * Taking any immunosuppressive drugs or biological agents (including: methotrexate, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil, mycophenolic acid, leflunomide, cyclosporine, cyclophosphamide, tacrolimus, rituximab, and belimumab) * Any reason the treating rheumatologist is concerned about ongoing activity not captured by SLEDAI * HCQ level \< 100 ng/ml as this would support noncompliance and less reliance on HCQ to control activity * Patient unwilling or unable to comply with study procedures for any reason * Any indications of potentially diminished capacity, such as a diagnosis of dementia or cognitive impairment (including, but not limited to stroke-related cognitive impairment)
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
11 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Columbia University Irving Medical Center/New York Presbyterian
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10032, United States
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Emory University School of Medicine
RECRUITINGAtlanta, Georgia, 30322, United States
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Hackensack Meridian Health
RECRUITINGHackensack, New Jersey, 07601, United States
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Hospital for Special Surgery
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10021, United States
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Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine
COMPLETEDThe Bronx, New York, 10461, United States
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NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10016, United States
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NYU Langone Health
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10016, United States
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Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
RECRUITINGOklahoma City, Oklahoma, 73104, United States
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Penn State MS Hershey Medical Center
RECRUITINGHershey, Pennsylvania, 17033, United States
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University of California, Los Angeles
RECRUITINGLos Angeles, California, 90095, United States
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University of California: San Diego
RECRUITINGSan Diego, California, 92093, United States
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VA NY Harbor Healthcare System
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10010, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a single drug tame multiple autoimmune diseases?