Emergent BioSolutions’ Phase III trial of SARS-CoV-2 Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human) (COVID-HIG) to treat hospitalized patients with COVID-19 showed that the addition of the treatment to Gilead Sciences’ remdesivir did not provide clinical benefit compared to standard of care plus placebo in hospitalized adult COVID-19 patients with symptoms for less than 12 days.
Genentech reported that the company’s rheumatoid arthritis drug Actemra failed to hit the primary endpoint in a Covid-19 trial, while Vir and GlaxoSmithKline’s antibody against Covid-19 demonstrated 85 percent efficacy.
Swiss drugmaker Roche said on March 11 adding the company’s drug Actemra to Gilead Sciences’ Veklury medication, also called remdesivir, did not reduce hospital stays for patients with severe Covid-19 pneumonia.
BioSpace looks at some of the top stories from Day 2 of the virtual JP Morgan Annual Healthcare Conference.
Despite some controversy over the effectiveness of Gilead Sciences’ Veklury (remdesivir) as the first antiviral drug approved to treat Covid-19, the product is bolstering the company’s bottom line and 2020 guidance was updated to reflect that.
The chemotherapy pralatrexate and the antibiotic azithromycin were successful at preventing replication of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, according to research with Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology in China.
Incyte and Novartis announced a Phase III study of Jakafi (ruxolitinib), a first-in-class JAK1/JAK2 inhibitor, failed to hit endpoints as a treatment for patients 12 and up with Covid-19 associated cytokine storm.
A single-patient study conducted by British scientists found that Gilead’s remdesivir could be highly effective against Covid-19, raising questions about previous studies that found the antiviral drug had no impact on death rates from the disease.
Once touted as promising treatments and by some even a cure, the World Health Organization dashes those claims, finding no benefit in the use of four popular Covid-19 treatments (remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir, or interferon-beta-1a) on hospitalized patients.
Gilead’s remdesivir should not be used for patients hospitalized with Covid-19, regardless of how ill they are, as there is no evidence the drug improves survival or reduces the need for ventilation, a World Health Organization panel said.