The race for a potential coronavirus vaccine or at least a highly-effective form of treatment continues but hopes were down upon the leak of a study on what could be the results of the first trial carried out on Gilead Sciences' antiviral drug remdesivir.
WHO Website Takes Down Summary Study on Remdesivir
The World Health Organization (WHO) website had to take down a summary of a study conducted in China on Gilead's experimental antiviral drug as it was revealed that researchers who did the study did not approve the data's posting, STAT reported.
Remdesivir was originally developed for Ebola. Following studies by Gilead Sciences that the experimental drug could be effective against coronavirus strains, Chinese scientists and epidemiology experts approached the company for trial studies.
Two trials were established to determine whether the drug would be effective against COVID-19. The data posted "inadvertently" on the WHO website was the summary of studies done on patients with severe symptoms.
The researchers from China noted on the summary that remdesivir was "not associated with a difference in time to clinical improvement," which indicates that the drug could not speed up recovery for severe COVID-19 patients.
WHO Responds to 'Draft' Summary
WHO spokesperson Daniela Bagozzi said that the data posted on the website was "a draft manuscript" and is currently undergoing peer review. The WHO has to wait for a final version of the studies before it comments on the trials conducted in China.
The TIME Magazine noted that the trial results provided by Chinese researchers about the Gilead drug would be the first solid data under gold stand clinical trials. The final version of the studies is expected to be guiding data that other researchers will use as the race for an effective coronavirus treatment ensues.
On the other hand, it is also expected that further studies on remdesivir will push through for months before another set of studies are revealed regarding the experimental antiviral drug.
Gilead Defends Results
Amid ongoing questions and debates regarding the effectivity of Gilead Sciences' antiviral drug, the California-based pharmaceutical company warned that the leaked post was inclusive of "inappropriate characterizations of the study," the Financial Times reported.
The company went on to clarify that the trial was "terminated early due to low enrolment," adding that the low enrolment figures of COVID-19 patients made the study "underpowered to enable statistically meaningful conclusions."
Furthermore, the company explained that even some trends in the trials indicate "a potential benefit for remdesivir," more apparent in coronavirus patients who receive treatment during their early stages of infection.
Gilead Halts Trading Temporarily
Due to the massive slump of Gilead shares on Thursday, the company temporarily stopped trading. The downtrend in shares came following the leak of the study summary.
On the other hand, things were much better later in the day. According to NBC News, the statement from Gilead regarding the draft summary having inconclusive details buoyed shares during afternoon trading.
For investors, it is crucial for pharmaceuticals to come up with a highly-effective COVID-19 treatment that will encourage the economy to achieve normalcy despite the global health crisis.
