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It has been announced that the UK RECOVERY trial will be starting investigations into a new possible treatment for COVID-19, Regeneron’s REGN-COV2 investigational antibody cocktail.
Prof Fiona Watt, Executive Chair of the Medical Research Council, said:
“With our support, the RECOVERY trial has previously found the most clinically effective treatment for Covid-19 so far, dexamethasone. The same UK-wide trial will now test a new treatment designed specifically to combat the virus that causes the disease. Monoclonal, or targeted, antibodies are already used to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases. The new trial will tell us whether antibodies that attacks the virus can be an effective treatment for Covid-19.”
Nick Cammack, COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator Lead at Wellcome, said:
“Novel antivirals and monoclonal antibodies are among the most exciting and promising treatments for Covid-19 because they are specific to the disease, but they are also traditionally the most expensive. Large-scale randomised controlled studies like RECOVERY give us the best understanding of whether drugs like REGN-COV2 are safe and effective against Covid-19, but we must ensure that any successful treatment is available to everyone who needs it globally.
“Finding effective treatments will transform the impact of the pandemic on lives and economies across the world. Dexamethasone remains the only drug that has made a significant difference to patient mortality from Covid-19: we need many more. Investing in research into a wide range of treatments, alongside vaccines and testing, and ensuring all advances are fairly available globally, remains our only exit from the pandemic.”
Prof Robin Ferner, Honorary Professor of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Birmingham & Honorary Consultant Physician, City Hospital Birmingham, said:
“It is good that Regeneron has asked investigators to include their antibody cocktail in RECOVERY, which is large, well run, and likely to produce clinically useful results.”
All our previous output on this subject can be seen at this weblink:
www.sciencemediacentre.org/tag/covid-19
Declared interests
Nick Cammack: “No COI.”
Prof Robin Ferner: “No conflicts.”
None others received.