Assessment of the Ability of Subjects With Acromegaly or Their Partners to Administer Somatuline Autogel

Clinical experience with Somatuline Autogel to date has raised the possibility of self or partner injection. Previous microparticle somatostatin analogue formulations required careful reconstitution and as a result the cost of the analogues and the inconvenience of reconstitution meant self or partner injection was not a viable option. Somatuline Autogel does not require reconstitution as it comes ready-mixed in a pre-filled syringe, thus making it more user-friendly than its predecessor and introducing the possibility of self or partner injection. Patients with acromegaly often travel considerable distances every 28 days in order to receive their somatostatin analogue injections in the clinic. If Somatuline Autogel can be safely administered unsupervised, while maintaining disease control, this could offer patients considerable benefits in terms of reduced frequency of visits to the clinic. This study is designed to allow suitably motivated patients with acromegaly or their partners to learn how to successfully inject Somatuline Autogel while maintaining their mean GH level control. Disease control in these patients will be assessed by comparing their GH and IGF-1 levels to accepted medical standards for control of acromegaly and by comparing the levels of GH and IGF-1 control achieved with baseline values.