Researchers lead trial to test remdesivir drug on COVID-19 patients

Patients with severe COVID-19 are being recruited to test the drug remdesivir as part of a new trial which is being led by the MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL. The trial is the first academic study of the drug as a treatment for coronavirus to take place in the UK The Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial (ACTT-EU/UK) trial, which is taking place in about 75 hospitals globally, recruited its first UK patient this week. The study will initially test the effectiveness of the antiviral drug remdesivir, that was developed to treat Ebola and Marburg virus infections, as a treatment for COVID-19. UK hospitals taking part in the trial include the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle; the Churchill Hospital, Oxford; Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital,London; the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, and St. James's University Hospital, Leeds. Professor Sarah Pett, co-lead of the study (MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL) with Professor Abdel Babiker (MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL) said, "In the initial phase of this study we would like to make sure that remdesivir, a drug originally developed for the treatment of Ebola virus, is safe for use in humans with COVID-19, and see if it can improve patients' health when they are sick and hospitalised, with COVID-19. "The fast track approval and support provided by the research ethics committee and Health Research Authority, the MHRA and Research and Development departments at the hospitals greatly facilitated the very rapid opening of sites, in response to the urgent need for treatments for this virus.