Trump gets experimental antibody cocktail to treat COVID-19. What is it?
President Donald Trump’s doctor gave him an experimental antibody cocktail to treat his coronavirus infection, according to a health update posted on Twitter.
Dr. Sean Conley said the president was given a single 8-gram dose of a “polyclonal antibody cocktail” as a “precautionary measure,” in addition to “zinc, vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin and a daily aspirin,” reads the statement tweeted by White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany.
Trump is also being transported to Walter Reed Hospital in Maryland “for the next few days,” McEnany said Friday evening, McClatchy’s D.C. Bureau reported.
So, what is an antibody cocktail?
According to the developers, Regeneron, it’s a mixture of two different kinds of antibodies that can be administered before someone has been exposed to the coronavirus or as treatment once infected, as is the case with Trump.
Scientists evaluated thousands of “fully-human” antibodies produced by mice that were genetically modified to have a human-like immune system, as well as antibodies from recovered COVID-19 patients.
The two “potent” antibodies that form the “cocktail” attach to a major receptor on the coronavirus’ spike protein that acts as the gate to enter human cells, the company says.
This binding “diminishes the ability of mutant viruses to escape treatment” and protects against other versions of the spike protein that may develop over time as the virus spreads.
The company announced its first data on their phase 1, 2 and 3 clinical trials Tuesday, stating the cocktail reduced viral load and improved symptoms in non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients. It was also shown to reduce medical visits, according to the company.
A single 8-gram dose is considered “high,” the company says.
Conley said Trump’s infusion with the novel treatment occurred “without incident.”
“As of this afternoon the President remains fatigued but in good spirits. He’s being evaluated by a team of experts, and together we’ll be making recommendations to the President and First Lady in regards to next best steps,” Conley wrote in the health update.
It’s unknown if First Lady Melania Trump has received the same treatment.
Regeneron’s chief executive, Dr. Leonard S. Schleifer, told the New York Times that Trump’s medical staff contacted the company for “permission to use the drug, and that it was cleared with the Food and Drug Administration,” the outlet reported.
Schleifer said it’s not the first time a patient has been granted permission to use the treatment outside of the clinical trial, but these decisions are made on a “case-by-case basis,” the Times wrote.
“All we can say is that they asked to be able to use it, and we were happy to oblige,” Schleifer told the Times. “When it’s the president of the United States, of course, that gets — obviously — gets our attention.”
However, not all experts are convinced the treatment is safe yet. Dr. Jeremy Faust, an emergency medicine doctor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, said he’s worried the decision to give the president a treatment that has yet to be fully vetted “reflects their desperation” to prevent the worst outcome.
“I’m very concerned about the president’s team giving an unvetted, untested treatment. This has not been shown to work in clinical trials. This is a problem,” Faust said in a Twitter voice message. “We shouldn’t be giving the president this medication until it’s been proven to work. We should not be giving it to anybody. And we shouldn’t be treating the president as a guinea pig and experimenting on him.”
“It’s just very alarming and it’s a setback for science,” Faust added.
Some of the other treatments given to Trump includes famotidine, a heartburn medication, melatonin to help with sleep and zinc to help immune system and metabolism function.
This story was originally published October 2, 2020 at 5:29 PM with the headline "Trump gets experimental antibody cocktail to treat COVID-19. What is it?."
