An anti-tumour necrosis factor drug is to be tested as a community treatment for COVID-19 infection, it has been announced.
An Oxford University trial of adalimumab, which is used to treat a range of inflammatory diseases, will test the drug on patients in care homes and other care settings.
The trial is to involve up to 750 patients with funding from major donors such as Wellcome and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
It has been launched after studies showed that patients using the drug for arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease appeared to have reduced rates of hospitalisation for infection.
Researcher Professor Duncan Richards said: “The observed potential of anti-TNF drugs has prompted us to conduct a study in patients in community care to see whether treatment with the anti-TNF drug adalimumab reduces the progression to severe or critical disease or death in COVID-19 patients.
“We think anti-TNF drugs could be an important treatment for COVID-19 and are very grateful for the support of the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator, which will allow us to find out.”
Professor Dan Lasserson, professor of acute ambulatory care at Warwick University, added: “This is the first drug trial designed for Acute Hospital at Home services and it could not come at a more important time. We need to determine the best treatments for COVID-19 that can be given to older people with frailty who are in care homes or living in their own homes.”
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