Bringing optimised COVID-19 vaccine schedules to immunocompromised populations: statistical elements and design.

Publication date: Jul 25, 2025

Bringing optimised coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine schedules to immunocompromised populations (BOOST-IC) is a multi-site, adaptive platform trial designed to assess the effect of different booster vaccination schedules in the Australian immunocompromised population on the immunogenicity, safety and cross-protection against COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its variants. Participants from one of three immunocompromised subpopulations (people living with human immunodeficiency virus, solid organ transplants or haematological malignancies) are randomised to receive a one- or two-dose booster vaccination schedule using one of three COVID-19 vaccine brands (Pfizer, Moderna or Novavax) available in Australia. The primary endpoint is the SARS-CoV-2 anti-spike immunoglobulin G concentration at 28 days after the final dose of study vaccine and is modelled using a Bayesian hierarchical two-part model, anticipating that a significant proportion of responses may be below the limit of assay detection. We describe the structure and objectives of the BOOST-IC trial and how these are mathematically represented, modelled and reported, including specification of the estimands, statistical models and decision criteria for trial adaptations. This paper should be read in conjunction with the BOOST-IC study protocol. BOOST-IC was registered on 27 September 2022 with the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry NCT05556720.

Open Access PDF

Concepts Keywords
Australia Adaptive trial
Coronavirus Australia
Models Bayes Theorem
Nct05556720 Bayesian
Organ COVID-19
COVID-19
COVID-19 Vaccines
COVID-19 Vaccines
Humans
Immunization Schedule
Immunization, Secondary
Immunocompromised
Immunocompromised Host
Immunogenicity
Immunogenicity, Vaccine
SARS-CoV-2
Statistical model
Vaccine

Semantics

Type Source Name
disease MESH coronavirus disease 2019
disease IDO site
disease IDO immunodeficiency
disease MESH malignancies
disease IDO assay
pathway REACTOME Reproduction
disease MESH syndrome
disease MESH uncertainty
disease MESH infection
disease IDO blood
drug DRUGBANK Trestolone
drug DRUGBANK Aspartame
disease IDO infection prevalence
disease MESH infectious diseases
disease IDO algorithm
disease IDO intervention
disease MESH Lymphoma
drug DRUGBANK Ademetionine
drug DRUGBANK Coenzyme M
drug DRUGBANK Methionine
disease MESH Pneumonia
drug DRUGBANK Piroxicam
drug DRUGBANK Etoperidone
disease MESH AIDS
disease MESH hematologic malignancies
disease MESH HIV infection
pathway REACTOME HIV Infection
disease MESH death
drug DRUGBANK Gold
drug DRUGBANK Adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate
drug DRUGBANK Ranitidine
disease MESH Immunocompromised Host

Original Article

(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)