AstraZeneca cancer drug tested in Covid-19
Add AstraZeneca's Calquence to the list of medicines that might — just might — have a benefit for severely ill patients with Covid-19.
On Friday, researchers published results in Science Immunology from 19 patients with severe Covid-19 who received the drug showing that the majority had improved oxygenation.
José Baselga, AstraZeneca's executive vice president of research & development oncology, said he was optimistic because patients with Covid-19 seem to have "activation" of Bruton's tyrosine kinase, the enzyme the drug targets. But he said he knows signs of benefit in small studies without control groups don't always pan out in more rigorous studies.
"This is not even a clinical trial, this is a cohort of patients being treated," he told STAT's Matthew Herper. "I think we need to prove it in a randomized clinical trial."
Still, he added: "This is as good as it gets at this stage of the game."
Two randomized trials have begun. Baselga said that it has been difficult to enroll enough Covid-19 patients in Europe, but that more sites will be opened in Brazil and the United States, as well as, potentially, other parts of South America.
On Friday, researchers published results in Science Immunology from 19 patients with severe Covid-19 who received the drug showing that the majority had improved oxygenation.
José Baselga, AstraZeneca's executive vice president of research & development oncology, said he was optimistic because patients with Covid-19 seem to have "activation" of Bruton's tyrosine kinase, the enzyme the drug targets. But he said he knows signs of benefit in small studies without control groups don't always pan out in more rigorous studies.
"This is not even a clinical trial, this is a cohort of patients being treated," he told STAT's Matthew Herper. "I think we need to prove it in a randomized clinical trial."
Still, he added: "This is as good as it gets at this stage of the game."
Two randomized trials have begun. Baselga said that it has been difficult to enroll enough Covid-19 patients in Europe, but that more sites will be opened in Brazil and the United States, as well as, potentially, other parts of South America.
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