AstraZeneca's antibody cocktail Evusheld gets UK MHRA authorisation for COVID-19 pre-exposure prophylaxis

The UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has authorised AstraZeneca's antibody cocktail Evusheld (tixagevimab co-packaged with cilgavimab) for the treatment of COVID-19 , Evusheld is the first exposure to COVID-19 licensed in the UK Pro- Prophylactic Antibody Combinations

This medicine is for adults who are not currently infected with COVID-19 and who are unlikely to respond adequately to a COVID-19 vaccination, including adults for whom the vaccine is not recommended

Around 500,000 people in the UK are immunocompromised , including those with blood cancer, taking immunosuppressive drugs or suffering from conditions such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis

Tom Keith Roach, President, AstraZeneca UK, said: "Evusheld fills a gap in the UK's fight against COVID-19, providing protection to those who may not be vaccinated and are often the most clinically vulnerable

The primary data from the ongoing Phase III trial (PROVENT study), which has met its primary endpoint, showed a statistically in the risk of symptomatic COVID-19 in the Evusheld group compared to placebo .

Notably, the Omicron COVID-19 variant was not prevalent at the time of the PROVENT trial, but preliminary data from FDA scientists suggest that Evusheld is still effective for that variant

Original source:

https://