Britain will start to roll out Merck's molnupiravir Covid-19 antiviral pill through a drug trial later this month, Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser at the UK Health Security Agency said on Sunday (November 7).
Last week Britain became the first country in the world to approve the potentially game-changing Covid-19 antiviral pill, jointly developed by US-based Merck & Co Inc and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.
The government said in October it had secured 480,000 courses of the Merck drug, as well as 250,000 courses of an antiviral pill developed by Pfizer Inc.
Asked about the molnupiravir approval, Hopkins told BBC television: "That is great news and it will start to be rolled out through a drug trial in the end of this month/the beginning of December."
Hopkins said all the trials so far had been done with the unvaccinated, so this would help understand how it will work in the wider vaccinated population.
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Researchers from the University of Oxford today (December 8) started recruiting for a clinical trial to test novel antiviral Covid-19 treatments for early use in the illness by people in the community and those who are at higher risk of complications.
Partnering with the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), colleagues in several UK universities, and the NHS UK-wide, the Platform Adaptive trial of NOvel antiviRals for eArly treatMent of Covid-19 In the Community (PANORAMIC), is a national priority trial, and will be open to participants from across the UK.
The first treatment to be tested by the UK Antiviral Taskforce will be molnupiravir, a Covid antiviral pill already licensed by the MHRA.
Britain became the first country in the world to approve molnupiravir, which was jointly developed by U.S.-based Merck & Co Inc and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, in November.
With growing concerns over the spread of Omicron variant, the UK has signed two contracts with drug majors Pfizer Inc. and Merck & Co to buy 4.25 million courses of antivirals for the NHS patients.
The move is aimed at reducing hospitalisations and easing pressures on the NHS.
The two new contracts are for 1.75 million additional courses of Merck Sharp and Dohme's (MSD) molnupiravir (Lagevrio®) and 2.5 million additional courses of PF-07321332/ritonavir (Paxlovid™) from Pfizer.
The ordered drugs will be available from early next year and both are expected to be effective against Omicron.
The recent order is in addition to the 480,000 courses of molnupiravir and 250,000 courses of PF-07321332/ritonavir procurement announced in October.
Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories will launch its generic version of Merck's antiviral Covid-19 pill, molnupiravir, and price it at 35 rupees ($0.4693) per capsule, a company spokesperson said on Tuesday (January 4).
The overall cost for a patient treated with a 5-day course of 40 capsules of the generic drug, to be sold under brand name 'Molflu', will come up to 1,400 rupees ($18.77).
In comparison, the treatment with Merck's pill in the United States costs $700.
"Molflu is expected to be available from early next week in pharmacies throughout (India) with particular focus on states with high caseload of Covid-19," the company spokesperson said.
India last week gave emergency use approval to along with two vaccines, as the country braces for a possible spike in coronavirus cases due to the rapidly spreading Omicron variant.
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UK regulator has approved a second oral antiviral for early treatment of Covid-19 in high-risk adults, after molnupiravir.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) gave its nod for a new treatment called Paxlovid (PF-07321332 and ritonavir), after finding it safe and effective at reducing the risk of hospitalisation and death in people diagnosed with mild Covid-19 infection.
Developed by Pfizer, Paxlovid prevents the multiplying of virus, helping the body to overcome the infection.
A clinical trial for the treatment in high risk individuals revealed that a five-days course of Paxlovid reduces the risk of hospitalisation and death by 89 per cent.
It further revealed that Paxlovid is most effective when taken in the early stage of infection.
Dr June Raine, MHRA chief executive, said: "We now have a further antiviral medicine for the treatment of Covid-19 that can be taken by mouth rather than administered
intravenously. This means it can be administered outside a hospital setting, before Covid-19 has progressed to a severe stage."
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Global demand for Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral treatment Paxlovid has been unexpectedly low due to complicated eligibility requirements, reduced testing, and potential for drug interactions, according to a media report.
Demand also has been hampered by the perception that Omicron infections are not that severe.
Paxlovid was expected to be a major tool in the fight against Covid after it reduced hospitalizations or deaths in high-risk patients by around 90 per cent in a clinical trial.
Thousands of people still die from Covid-19 every week, even as global infections are far off their peak. And there are only a few proven antiviral treatments, of which Paxlovid is the most attractive. The others are Merck & Co's far less effective rival pill molnupiravir, and Gilead Sciences' intravenous remdesivir.
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