AstraZeneca antibody found to reduce risk of severe Covid-19 by over 80pc

AstraZeneca reported positive findings from recent studies into its Covid-19 antibody treatment on Thursday, reporting that when given to at-risk and immunocompromised patients before exposure to the coronavirus, it reduced the risk of developing severe disease by 83%.

The FTSE 100 pharmaceutical giant said that in addition, in a study of patients who had already contracted Covid-19, it reduced the risk of developing severe disease or dying by 88%.

It said the findings showed the treatment could be a useful prophylaxis for at-risk and immunocompromised patients who could not receive a vaccine, or who might not have an effective immune response to the jab.

AstraZeneca said around 2% of people globally were considered to have a higher risk of an “inadequate” immune response to a Covid-19 vaccine.

In early October, the company applied to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency use authorisation for the treatment, currently dubbed ‘AZD7442’.

The firm agreed to supply the US federal government with 700,000 doses of the antibody treatment if it gets that authorisation, and had also struck deals with other countries.

“AZD7442 is the only long-acting antibody with phase 3 data to demonstrate benefit in both pre-exposure prophylaxis and treatment of Covid-19 with one dose,” said AstraZeneca’s executive vice-president of biopharmaceuticals research and development, Mene Pangalos.

“These new data add to the growing body of evidence supporting AZD7442’s potential to make a significant difference in the prevention and treatment of Covid-19.

“We are progressing regulatory filings around the world and look forward to providing an important new option against SARS-CoV-2 as quickly as possible.”

At 1133 GMT, shares in AstraZeneca were down 1.18% at 8,489p.