The antibody cocktail is a combination of Casirivimab and Imdevimab, which are laboratory made monoclonal antibodies. The cocktail works just like antibodies produced in the human body in response to any viral infection.
The initial use of monoclonal antibody cocktail, the combination of drugs used on former US President Donald Trump and given emergency use approval in India in early May, has given encouraging results, with doctors involved touting it as the “first real treatment for Covid-19”.
Eight-four-year-old Mohabbat Singh, a resident of Haryana, was the first patient in India to be administered the antibody drug cocktail at Medanta Medicity, Gurugram, on May 25. The doctor treating him, Sushila Kataria, told ET, “the patient has tested negative. We have administered the drug cocktail to 15 patients so far. All are fine. This is the first real treatment for Covid-19 and can go a long way in reducing mortality especially in elderly patients and those who are immunocompromised.”
The antibody cocktail is a combination of Casirivimab and Imdevimab, which are laboratory made monoclonal antibodies. The cocktail works just like antibodies produced in the human body in response to any viral infection. The two come in separate vials, which are opened and mixed like a cocktail. Then the combination is administered to the patient in a saline drip. The cocktail is specifically directed against the spike protein of Sars-Cov-2 and blocks the virus from attaching to human cells and replicating. This cocktail is recommended at the early onset of Covid-19 to patients who have comorbidities like diabetes, chronic kidney disease and those undergoing chemotherapy as they run the risk of hospitalisation or developing serious Covid-19.
Speaking to ET, senior consultant at Fortis Hospital Mohali, Dr Zafar Ahmed, said, “we have administered it to a 72-year-old patient who is diabetic, hypertensive and has chronic kidney disease. We suspected Covid-19 and on day 3 he tested positive. We advised the family about the treatment. Though this is a daycare procedure where we would ideally observe the patient for 4-5 hours and then discharge, we admitted him for a day to see the response. It has been over 72 hours and he is stable. We are monitoring him through teleconsultation.” Treating doctors say that it is not a therapy so the response to cocktail is prevention of worsening of disease. Dr Kataria said, “we monitor that the patient should not need hospitalisation. In our cases none of the 15 patients needed hospitalisation.”
Senior pulmonologist at Indraprastha Apollo hospital, Rajesh Chawla, who administered this to the first patient in Delhi, said, “the timing of administration of this cocktail is important. If you give it later than 48-72 hours after the onset of symptoms it would not attack the virus. The viral load is less within the first seven days, so it is best given then. It is a one-time treatment and highly effective. Several patients are now asking about this treatment.”
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The antibody cocktail is safe for children above 12 years. Dr Kataria said that her youngest patient is 19 years old. The biggest hitch, however, is the pricing. The cocktail is priced at ₹59,750 per dose. One vial comes with two doses and once opened the vial has to be used within 48 hours. “The government should proactively work on the pricing. When Hepatitis C drug was introduced in the US, it first it cost ₹25 lakh. Now the same drug costs ₹25,000. If patent waivers are considered between governments and if we work on the tax structure, the cost can be brought down,” said Kataria.
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