Massimo Radin, MD, PhD: TuTOR App Tailors Oral Therapy in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatology Network interviewed Massimo Radin, MD, PhD, to discuss his upcoming European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) 2022 presentation, “Tailoring Oral therapy in Rheumatoid Arthritis: The TuTOR App.” Radin is a researcher at the University of Torino (UNITO).

His team began investigating tailoring oral therapy in patients with RA by analyzing tofacitinib and whether patients adhered to it or not. While it is an effective treatment option, adherence was crucial as patients had to take it twice a day. They set out to discover a strategy to improve adherence in their patients and ensure the best possible success rate.

“It was really a great collaborative effort because we're not used to using this kind of technology and having to explain it to our patients. But it was great because we could monitor how the patients were taking the drug. Also, changing medication that was much clearer to the patient because usually in the clinic, we write it down for them and then give them a paper where all the medications are spelled out. But here, they also got an alarm clock, so they knew exactly when it was time to take all the different medications.”

While patients ultimately enjoyed the experience of using the app, they also found success with a paper diary. This cemented the belief that a tool for adherence, whether app-based or not, was very important, especially when a patient is being treated multiple medications or drugs that need to be taken multiple times a day.

“Being very clear on the timing of the medications and how to take them, really helps [our patients]. With chronic diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis, where patients have to take a lot of medications for a long period of time, it's even more important,” Radin stresses.