Eli Lilly & Co. has announced that enrollment of patients for the third phase clinical test of its antibody COVID vaccine has been temporarily suspended because of a potential safety concern, the latest setback to health authorities in the long and arduous fight against the virus.
The biotech's government-backed trial is similar to one that U.S. President Donald Trump took. An independent data safety monitoring panel recommended halting the trial. The company did not provide further details with regards to the cause behind the pause.
Lilly is among multiple groups developing monoclonal antibody treatments, which has the capability to help those with early symptoms of the disease from developing serious infections, and is also being evaluated as a prophylaxis. Pharmaceutical executives and scientists view antibody therapy as a feasible bridge to a vaccine.
In a statement, Lilly said that the test, examining the company's experimental antibody as a treatment for coronavirus in hospitalized patients, is backed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "Lilly is very supportive of the decision by the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board to ensure the safety of the patients in the research," CNN reported.
American pharmaceutical group Johnson & Johnson temporarily stopped its extensive high-profile COVID vaccine test a day earlier as a result of unexplained sickness in a research patient. The company's study director Mathai Mammen told investors Tuesday that it was a "temporary pause" that may not have any connections to their vaccine, adding the company does not yet know if the patient was administered with the vaccine or a placebo.
The type of treatments was highlighted when Trump was given a similar vaccine developed by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals after he tested positive for the virus. Trump has since described the treatment as a "miracle cure," and said he would vouch for it to get Food and Drug Administration approval in the U.S.
