WSC 2023 | Trials assessing colchicine for recurrent ischemic stroke prevention

Aristeidis Katsanos, MD, PhD, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, introduces ongoing randomized, controlled trials investigating the efficacy of anti-inflammatory drug colchicine for the secondary prevention of ischemic stroke. The drug received attention in the stroke community after the Colchicine Cardiovascular Outcomes Trial (COLCOT) (NCT02551094) found 0.5mg/day colchicine over a two-year period can reduce the risk of stroke by 50% in patients with myocardial infarction. This inspired the CHANCE-3 (NCT05439356) trial in China which assessed the efficacy of low-dose colchicine over 90 days, in patients with a history of ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack. Results presented at WSC 2023 show that colchicine use was not associated with a reduction in subsequent strokes at 90 days. Dr Katsanos hypothesizes that the neutral result could be due to the short trial duration. CONVINCE (NCT02898610) and RIISC-THETIS (NCT05476991) are ongoing trials with longer duration which will hopefully produce positive results, making colchicine a low cost and readily available preventative treatment for ischemic stroke patients. This interview took place at the World Stroke Congress (WSC) 2023 in Toronto, Canada.

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