E-Paper
WHO to conduct international trials of these three drugs for Covid-19 treatment
Under the next phase of the Solidarity trial, called Solidarity PLUS, artesunate, imatinib and infliximab will be tested on thousands of volunteer patients.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday announced major international trials to test three new drugs in hospitalised coronavirus disease (Covid-19) patients. Under the next phase of the Solidarity trial, called Solidarity PLUS, artesunate, imatinib and infliximab will be tested on thousands of volunteer patients in more than 600 hospitals in 52 countries, 16 more countries than the first phase of trials.
“Finding more effective and accessible therapeutics for Covid-19 patients remains a critical need, and WHO is proud to lead this global effort,” WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press briefing.
The largest global collaboration among WHO member states allows the trial to assess multiple treatments using a single protocol, according to the UN health agency. Through the expansive programme, new treatments could be added and ineffective treatment could be dropped throughout the course of the trial. In the first phase, remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir and interferon were evaluated for the treatment of hospitalised Covid-19 patients but the results showed the four drugs had little or no effect.
“I would like to thank the participating governments, pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, clinicians and patients, who have come together to do this in true global solidarity,” said Tedros.
The three drugs to be tested under Solidarity PLUS are already used for other diseases.
Artesunate is used to treat malaria. During the trial, the intravenous drug will be administered for seven days, using the standard dose recommended for the treatment of severe malaria. According to WHO, artemisinin and its derivatives have been extensively used in the treatment of malaria and other parasitic diseases for over 30 years.
Imatinib is a small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor used to treat certain cancers. The drug will be administered orally once everyday for 14 days.
Johnson and Johnson’s infliximab, a TNF alpha inhibitor, is used to treat diseases of the immune system. The intravenous drug will be administered during the trial as a single dose.
