Is a new promising treatment against Covid soon to be marketed? This is what Regeneron and Roche laboratories can think as they have released – this Monday April 12 – the encouraging results of phase 3 of their clinical trial on a cocktail of medicines, mixing casirivimab and imdevimab, likely to cut coronavirus viral load off, and dramatically limit contaminations within a household.
The treatment is given via subcutaneous injection, a 1,200mg dose is said to reduce by 81% “the risk of symptomatic infections […] in those who were not infected when they entered the trial”. A cocktail of medicines that is also said to make onset symptoms in patients prior to inoculating the treatment faster, in about a week, against three in people given a placebo during the trial.
The idea behind this treatment is to immediately provide protection against the virus, after someone close has developed symptoms within a household. “With more than 60,000 Americans continuing to be diagnosed with Covid-19 every day, the REGEN-COV antibody cocktail may help provide immediate protection to unvaccinated people who are exposed to the virus,” said George D. Yancopoulos, Regeneron’s president and chief scientific officer. A solution completing vaccine as well, to limit the infection risk in contact cases. And another way to drastically curb contaminations in everyone.
Note publication in a medical magazine is still awaited, including peer-review to expect marketing authorization.