Vignettes

The R package rpact has been developed to design sequential and adaptive experiments. Many of the functions of the R package are available in an online Shiny app. For more information about rpact, including a quick start guide and manual, visit the rpact website. This step by step vignette accompanies the manuscript “Group Sequential Designs: A Tutorial” by Lakens, Pahlke, & Wassmer (2021).

This R Markdown document provides an example of implementing, simulating and analyzing multi-arm-multi-stage (MAMS) designs for testing rates with rpact with special regards to futility bound determination, treatment arm selection and generic data analysis.

After exemplarily using the binary endpoint analysis module from rpact, an illustrative landmark analysis (comparison of empirical survival probabilities at specific time point) using Greenwoods standard error estimation is to be performed. Since rpact itself does not directly support this type of analysis, another packages’ functionality needs to be utilized to perform the survival probability and standard error estimation to eventually use the estimates as input for a hypothetical continuous endpoint dataset which subsequently is to be analyzed as such.

This R Markdown document provides examples for assessing trials with adaptive sample size re-calculation (SSR) using rpact. It also shows how to implement the promizing zone approach as proposed by Mehta and Pocock 2011 and further developed by Hsiao et al 2019 with rpact.

This R Markdown document provides examples for designing trials with binary endpoints using rpact.

This R Markdown document provides an example for planning a trial with a binary endpoint using rpact. It also illustrates the use of ggplot2 for illustrating the characteristics of a sample size recalculation strategy. Another example for planning a trial with binary endpoints can be found in the vignette Designing group sequential trials with a binary endpoint with rpact.

This R Markdown document provides examples for designing trials with survival endpoints using rpact.

This R Markdown document provides example code for the the definition of the most commonly used group-sequential boundaries in rpact.

This R Markdown document provides an example for planning a trial with a survival endpoint using rpact thereby illustrating the different ways of entering recruitment schemes. It also demonstrates the use of the survival simulation function.

This R Markdown document provides an example for updating the group sequential boundaries when using an alpha-spending function approach based on observed information rates in rpact. Since version 3.1 of rpact, an additional option in the getAnalysisResults() function provides an easy way to perform an analysis with critical values that are calculated subsequently during the stages of the trial.

This R Markdown document describes how to simulate design characterics for survival design under complex settings (incl. non-proportional hazards) in rpact.