|
 It is the second large, late-stage study to show that combination
therapy of two antibodies, bamlanivimab and etesevimab, is effective
at treating mild to moderate cases of COVID-19.
The previous study, which published data in January, used a higher
dose of the drugs and reduced risk of hospitalization by 70%.
"I expect this data to continue to drive more utilization" of the
antibodies," said Daniel Skovronsky, chief scientific officer at Eli
Lilly.
"We have few other diseases where we have drugs that can offer this
magnitude of benefit."
U.S. regulators authorized the combination therapy in February for
use in COVID-19 patients 12 and over with a high risk of developing
serious complications. European regulators greenlighted its use in
March.
The United States agreed in February to purchase a minimum of
100,000 doses of the combination treatment.
Regulators authorized bamlanivimab alone for use against COVID-19
last year and the U.S. government agreed to purchase nearly 1.5
million doses.
[to top of second column] |
 Skovronsky said the combination
therapy has the benefit of offering greater
protection against new strains of COVID-19.
A variant of COVID-19 originally discovered in
Britain has infected patients in most U.S.
states and is expected to become the country's
dominant strain. (Graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/34pvUyi)
"We are quite confident this combo covers all of
the variants in the U.S.," Skovronsky said,
adding Lilly is studying an additional treatment
for new COVID strains first identified in South
Africa and Brazil, which have not become
widespread in the United States.
Skovronsky said that Lilly is prepared to
manufacture 1 million doses of the combination
therapy in the coming months and is in active
talks to supply governments around the world
with the treatment.
(Reporting by Carl O'Donnell and Michael Erman
in New York; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content |
