TRUMENBA (meningococcal group B vaccine)

4.2 Recommended Dose and Dosage Adjustment 

Primary series

2 doses: (0.5 mL each) administered at a 6-month interval. 

3 doses: 2 doses (0.5 mL each) administered at least 1 month apart, followed by a third dose at least 4 months after the second dose. 

The choice of dosing schedule may depend on the risk of exposure and the subject’s susceptibility to meningococcal serogroup B disease. 

Booster dose

A booster dose may be considered following either dosing regimen for individuals at continued risk of invasive meningococcal disease.

4.4 Administration

For intramuscular injection only. The preferred site for injection is the deltoid muscle of the upper arm. 

The vaccine should be shaken vigorously to ensure that a homogeneous white suspension is obtained. Do not use the vaccine if it cannot be resuspended. 

The vaccine should be visually inspected for particulate matter and discoloration prior to administration. This product should not be used if particulate matter or discolouration is found. 

Separate injection sites and different syringes must be used if more than one vaccine is administered at the same time. 

There are no data available on the interchangeability of Trumenba with other meningococcal serogroup B vaccines to complete the vaccination series.

4.5 Missed dose

If a dose of Trumenba is missed, individuals should contact their healthcare professionals for advice on appropriate series completion.

To help ensure the traceability of vaccines for patient immunization record-keeping as well as safety monitoring, health professionals should record the time and date of administration, quantity of administered dose (if applicable), anatomical site and route of administration, brand name and generic name of the vaccine, the product lot number and expiry date.

Trumenba is a sterile liquid suspension for intramuscular injection supplied in a single-dose prefilled syringe. 

Trumenba is supplied in cartons of 1 and 10 single-dose prefilled syringes, without needles. The tip cap and rubber plunger of the syringe are not made with natural rubber latex.

8.1 Adverse Reaction Overview

In clinical studies, the most common solicited adverse reactions were pain at the injection site, fatigue, headache, and muscle pain (see Tables 2 to 5).  Nausea was reported in up to 22% of subjects in early phase studies. Most local and systemic reactions were mild or moderate in severity and resolved within 1 to 3 days after vaccination. The frequencies of solicited adverse reactions were highest after the first dose regardless of the schedule.  The frequencies of solicited adverse reactions after subsequent doses were similar. 

Overall, data for adverse events (AEs) summarized by age, sex, and race were comparable to AEs reported for the overall population.

8.2 Clinical Trial Adverse Reactions

Clinical trials are conducted under very specific conditions.  The adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials, therefore, may not reflect the rates observed in practice and should not be compared to the rates in the clinical trials of another drug. Adverse reaction information from clinical trials may be useful in identifying and approximating rates of adverse drug reactions in real-world use.

The safety of Trumenba was investigated in 12 completed clinical studies conducted in the United States, Europe, Canada, Chile, and Australia (see 14 CLINICAL TRIALS) that enrolled a total of 21,860 subjects, of which 16,351 subjects received at least 1 dose of Trumenba (any dose level or vaccination regimen) administered alone or concomitantly with a licensed vaccine. A total of 5,509 control subjects received either saline alone, a licensed vaccine alone, or saline and a licensed vaccine. The core safety dataset comprises data derived from the 8 controlled studies for subjects 10-25 years of age who received at least 1 dose of Trumenba 120 mcg administered alone or concomitantly with a licensed vaccine on a schedule of 0, 2, and 6 months (n=13,284) or control vaccine (n=5,509) (Table 6). 

The safety evaluation in the clinical studies included an assessment of: (1) solicited local and systemic reactions, and use of antipyretic medication after each vaccination in an electronic diary maintained by the subject or the subject’s parent/legal guardian; and (2) spontaneous reports of adverse events (AEs), including serious adverse events (SAEs) throughout the study (day of vaccination through 1 month or 6 months after the last vaccination, depending on the study and safety parameter). 

Solicited Local and Systemic Reactions

Study B1971057 (Study 1057) was a Phase 3, randomized active-controlled, observer-blinded, multicenter trial in which 1057 subjects 10 through 25 years of age received at least 1 dose of Trumenba on a 0- and 6-month schedule. Trumenba was co-administered with meningococcal serogroups A,C,W,Y diphtheria CRM₁₉₇ conjugate vaccine (MenACWY-CRM₁₉₇) for the first dose. 

Study B1971009 (Study 1009) was a Phase 3, randomized, active-controlled, observer-blinded, global, multicenter trial in which 2,693 subjects 10 through 18 years of age received at least 1 dose of Trumenba on a 0-, 2-, and 6- month schedule. A control group received hepatitis A virus vaccine (HAV) at 0 and 6 months and received saline at 2 months. Subjects were randomized to receive 1 of 3 lots of Trumenba or HAV/saline. 

Study B1971016 (Study 1016) was a Phase 3, randomized, placebo-controlled, observer-blinded, global, multicenter trial in which 2,471 subjects 18 through 25 years of age received at least 1 dose of Trumenba or saline on a 0-, 2-, and 6- month schedule. 

Tables 2, 3, 4 and 5 present the percentage of subjects who reported solicited local (Tables 2 and 3) and systemic (Tables 4 and 5) reactions, regardless of causality, within 7 days of each dose of Trumenba for Study 1057 and following each dose of Trumenba or control (hepatitis A virus vaccine [HAV]/saline or saline) for pivotal Phase 3 studies 1009 and 1016, which both included Canadian subjects. 

Study 1042was a Phase 2 safety and immunogenicity study in US microbiology laboratory workers (n = 13, 24 to 62 years of age; 8 subjects >40 years of age) who received Trumenba on a 0, 2, 6-month schedule. No new safety signal was identified with the limited number of subjects.

Study B1971033 (Study 1033) was a Phase 3 open-label, follow-up study of subjects previously enrolled in a primary study, including Study B1971012 (Study 1012). Subjects attended visits over 4 years for collection of blood samples and received a single booster dose of Trumenba approximately 4 years after receipt of a primary series of 2 or 3 doses of Trumenba. Adverse reactions following booster vaccination in 301 subjects aged 15 through 23 years were similar to adverse reactions during the primary Trumenba vaccination series approximately 4 years earlier.

Adverse Events 

In Study 1057 investigating the two-dose (0 and 6 months) schedule (N=1057), adverse events that occurred within 30 days of vaccination were reported in 255 (24.1%) subjects who received at least one dose of Trumenba. 

In the 8 controlled studies (as described above) adverse events within 30 days after any dose were reported in 30.95% of subjects receiving Trumenba (n=13,284) and 28.37% of subjects in the control group (n=5,509). Adverse events that occurred at a frequency of at least 2% and were more frequently observed in subjects who received Trumenba than subjects in the control group were injection site pain (6.84% vs 3.59%), headache (3.78% vs 3.47%), and fever (2.61% vs 1.43%).

Serious Adverse Events 

In Study 1057 and Study 1012 investigating the two-dose (0 and 6 months) schedule, serious adverse events (SAEs) were reported by 8 (0.8%) and 7 (1.6%) subjects who received at least one dose of Trumenba, respectively. 

In the 8 controlled studies investigating the three-dose (0, 1-2, and 6 months) schedule, serious adverse events (SAEs) were reported by 1.6% and 1.9% of subjects who received at least one dose of Trumenba or control, respectively.

8.5 Post-Market Adverse Reactions

The following are considered adverse reactions for Trumenba and were reported in the post-marketing experience. Because these reactions were derived from spontaneous reports, the frequency could not be determined. 

Immune system disorders:  Allergic reactions

Nervous system disorders: Syncope (fainting)

10.1 Mechanism of Action

Protection against invasive meningococcal disease is mediated by serum bactericidal antibodies to bacterial surface antigens. Bactericidal antibodies act in concert with human complement to kill meningococci. This process is measured in vitro with a serum bactericidal assay using human complement (hSBA). A positive response in the hSBA is the only accepted correlate of protection from meningococcal disease.  

Factor H binding protein (fHbp) is a meningococcal surface-exposed antigen expressed by >95% of serogroup B strains. Factor H is a soluble glycoprotein found in human blood which regulates the alternative complement pathway and prevents the damage of human cells by complement. Meningococcal fHbp binds human factor H to prevent complement activation, allowing bacteria to avoid host immune defenses. Meningococcal fHbp variants segregate into two immunologically distinct subfamilies (designated A and B).

Trumenba is a bivalent vaccine composed of two recombinant lipidated factor H binding proteins – one each from subfamilies A and B. The lipidated protein (which is the naturally occurring form of fHbp) induces antibodies that can kill MnB strains expressing fHbps that are heterologous to those in the vaccine, whereas non-lipidated variants are unable to induce broadly cross-reactive bactericidal responses. Each Trumenba fHbp antigen elicits cross-protective responses against serogroup B strains expressing diverse fHbp variants from the same subfamily. Trumenba prevents serogroup B disease by inducing broadly protective bactericidal antibody responses against diverse fHbp variants expressed by serogroup B strains. Bactericidal antibodies elicited by Trumenba may also prevent factor H from binding to fHbp and render the bacteria more susceptible to complement-mediated killing.

Epidemiology

Invasive meningococcal disease is caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Neisseria meningitidis. Out of 12 known serogroups of N. meningitidis, serogroups B, C, W, and Y are most commonly reported in Canada. While healthy individuals (particularly adolescents and young adults) can carry N. meningitidis asymptomatically, invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) can progress rapidly. Invasive disease typically presents as meningitis and/or septicemia, and can have substantial consequences, with case fatality rates ranging from 5.3% to 10.7%. Approximately 19% of survivors suffer long-term sequelae.

Prior to 2001, serogroup C disease was most prevalent in Canada, representing approximately 40% of IMD cases. Following the introduction of routine serogroup C conjugate immunization programs starting between 2001 and 2005 in all provinces, a significant decline of serogroup C disease was noted, leaving serogroup B as the predominant disease-causing serogroup in Canada. In recent years (2013-2017), a total of 548 IMD cases were reported. The majority of cases were attributed to serogroup B (53%) which accounted for the largest proportion of cases in all age groups except in adults 60 years and older. During this period, an epidemic of serogroup B meningococcal disease has been observed in the province of Quebec¹. In 2017, the incidence of IMD due to serogroup B was 0.13 cases per 100,000 population.²

When examining the age distribution of cases of serogroup B IMD reported by the Canadian Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (CNDSS), 37% of 669 cases reported between 2006 and 2011 occurred in children under 5 years of age; approximately 28% occurred in individuals 10-24 years of age and another 28% in individuals 25 years of age and older. The median age for contracting serogroup B IMD (2009-2011) was 16 years.³

The genotype of invasive serogroup B strains collected in Canada (2006-2012; n=258) as part of the Canadian Immunization Monitoring Program Active (IMPACT) surveillance network, including common epidemiological markers such as clonal complex (CC) and the fHbp variant type, has been determined. All isolates were found to contain the gene that codes for fHbp, with approximately 38% of strains expressing fHbp belonging to subfamily A and 62% to subfamily B. Consistent with findings from other countries, the distribution of Canadian strains expressing subfamily A and B differed as a function of patient age.  Compared with adolescents and young adults, considerably more meningococcal disease in infants < 1 year of age and in patients ≥65 years of age was due to serogroup B isolates expressing subfamily A fHbp variants.  Additionally, meningococcal carriage strains predominantly express subfamily A fHbp variants. A total of 50 different fHbp variants were identified in the IMPACT collection of MnB strains; however, 80% of the isolates expressed 1 of the following 10 most prevalent fHbp variants: B44, A22, B16, B09, A19, A05, A20, A12, B03, B24 (listed in order of decreasing prevalence). The CC profile of the Canadian MnB invasive isolates from 2006-2012 was largely composed of CC269 and CC41/44, representing approximately 39% and 29% of the total collection, respectively.⁴ Unlike IMD in other provinces, cases associated with the Quebec epidemic have been dominated by CC269 serogroup B strains, the majority of which express fHbp variant B44.

<sup>1. Zhou J, et al. J Clin Microbiol. 2012;50(15):1545-51.↩
2. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/vaccines-immunization/bivalent-factor-h-binding-protein-meningococcal-serogroup-b-prevention-meningococcal-b-disease.html ↩
3. Canada Communicable Disease Report (2014). Enhanced surveillance of invasive meningococcal disease in Canada, 2006-2011. 2014 May 1; 40(9)↩
4. Reference for the genotype of predominant strains: Canadian Immunization Monitoring Program Active (IMPACT). Comparative Analysis of Canadian Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup B (MnB) Isolates. International Pathogenic Neisseria Conference 2014.↩</sup>