However, treatments are not as simple as swallowing a pill. A nurse wearing full protective equipment needs to administer the treatment for about an hour and then monitor the patient for another hour.
Monoclonal treatments have many advantages. They work immediately, unlike a vaccine that takes a few weeks to take effect.
In addition, they will not cost patients anything under an agreement that companies have made with the government, although there may be an administration fee.
Both companies released additional details about the results of the prevention tests on Tuesday, although they have not yet published the results.
Antibody treatments can protect health homes
In a shareholder call on Tuesday, Lilly discussed what she called a “remarkable” prevention trial done with patients and nursing home staff.
Lilly set up infusion centers on site in nursing homes that reported a recent case of Covid-19. The company administered the infusion of 965 people with a negative result for the coronavirus and 132 with a positive result.
Half of the volunteers received the treatment, known as LY-CoV555 or bamlanivimab, while the other group received a placebo, which does nothing.
During the trial, 16 residents died, some of them from Covid-19. No team did. Eleven of those who died were among the group that received the placebo, compared with five who received antibody therapy.
Antibody treatments can protect against infections at home
Among 400 volunteers, half received therapy and the other half a placebo. The number of infections was lower among those who received the treatment, the company said on Tuesday.
Among the volunteers who received the therapy, those who fell ill had symptoms that did not last more than a week, while 40% of the people in the placebo group who were infected became ill for three to four weeks.
None of those infected who received the therapy had high viral loads, while 62% of those infected in the placebo group had high viral loads.
One person who received a placebo died. There were no deaths or hospitalizations in the group that received the treatment.
Where antibodies fit in a world with vaccines
Eli Lilly and Regeneron argue that their treatments can play an important role in the pandemic, even if more people are vaccinated.
“This data using REGEN-COV as a passive vaccine suggests that it can reduce transmission of the virus, as well as reduce viral load and disease in those who are still infected,” Dr. George Yancopoulos, president and chief scientific officer of Regeneron, said in a press release.
“Even with the emerging availability of active vaccines, we continue to see hundreds of thousands of people infected daily, actively spreading the virus to their close contacts. The REGEN-COV antibody cocktail may be able to help break this chain by providing passive immunity. immediate for those at high risk of infection, in contrast to active vaccines that take weeks to provide protection, “said Yancopoulos.
Skovronsky of Lilly said there was “variable absorption of vaccination” in nursing homes. In some cases, less than 50% want to be vaccinated.
“There are deaths every day in these facilities and it motivates us to be aggressive about prophylaxis, where we think we can have a rapid impact during this type of uncertain mixed vaccination period,” said Skovronsky.
Skovronsky also thinks that a day may come when vaccines will not fully protect against new variants of Covid-19.
“It probably informs our thinking about next generation antibodies and the need to stay ahead of it,” said Skovronsky.
If approved, how do people receive these treatments
It is not clear whether more people will use a treatment that can protect them from illness. It is also unclear whether the FDA will authorize monoclonal for this type of use. If they obtain emergency use authorization, the companies said they have laid the groundwork and have already took steps to educate people about these treatments and encourage more people to use them.
Some states have also tried to be more proactive. Contact trackers were encouraged to mention them when informing someone who was recently exposed to Covid-19.
Some hospitals have also sought to be proactive, using electronic medical records to quickly contact and offer treatments as soon as they have a positive result. If the FDA allows these treatments to be used preventively, the systems can always adjust to contact a person once they are tested, regardless of the result.
Regeneron said that if his treatment is authorized for prevention, a doctor can always prescribe it for the person he is treating and for his home.
Eli Lilly said that if people really want these treatments, they may have to order them directly.
“I think that patients and providers, in some cases, have to be persistent to navigate our health care system as is, unfortunately, often the case with different diseases, to get the ideal therapy,” said Skovronsky. “But for patients who want and qualify and providers who think it is right for their patients, it is widely available.”