The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just approved the third fully approved treatment for Covid-19: Tocilizumab (Actemra). This monoclonal antibody has previously been used to treat Castleman’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and other forms of chronic inflammation. It is approved specifically for the treatment of hospitalized adult patients who require supplemental oxygen, non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
Tocilizumab works by inhibiting IL-6, a secreted cytokine protein expressed by white blood cells. This can reduce both short and long-term consequences of Covid-19 infection. The FDA's approval of Tocilizumab was based on the results from two clinical trials: the University of Oxford-led RECOVERY trial and the Genentech-sponsored EMPACTA trial. The results showed a modest but significant reduction in mortality rates in those who received the drug over those who received the current standard of care.
The approval of Tocilizumab brings the number of approved treatments for Covid-19 to three, and highlights the difficulty of finding an effective treatment for this disease. While this is a positive development, more research needs to be done in order to find better ways to prevent and treat Covid-19.