The coronavirus pills are light at the end of the tunnel. They should be available soon – Startitup

Pfizer has applied to the US Food and Drug Administration for approval of a Paxlovid tablet for the treatment of coronavirus infections. The portal informs about it CNBC.

However, in addition to the Paxlovid pill, the FDA also deals with the Molnupiravir pill from Merck. The company applied to the FDA for an emergency permit a month ago.

If the FDA approves at least one option, pill treatment in the United States could be available by the end of this year. If that happens, the United States will join the United Kingdom, which approved Molnupiravir on November 4. The timetable for the review of Pfizer’s data is not yet known, but Merck’s data is due to be discussed on 30 November.

If the pills are approved, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will have to draw up national guidelines for their use.

Although the pills are great news, they are worrying. The biggest ones are associated with their affordability for average people. Drugs from both companies have been tested in the elderly and in people with obesity or heart disease. It is therefore not entirely clear how they will affect the course of the disease in relatively healthy individuals.

However, the pill can be seen as a turning point in a pandemic, as it should be able to simplify the treatment of seriously ill patients, prevent the disease, reduce coronavirus mortality in the country and ensure a reduced number of hospitalizations.

Will the pills save us?

The pill from Merck is not completely new, it was originally developed in 2000 for the treatment of influenza. Shortly after the outbreak of the pandemic, the researchers began to consider whether the pill could also work on SARS-CoV-2.

The drug has been shown to mimic duplicate parts of RNA that spread throughout the body and deliberately make mistakes in the genetic code of the virus, causing the virus to mutate and become extinct on its own.

People experience the peak of virus replication when they begin to perceive the first symptoms. This means that the pill is most effective when the patient takes it within a week of a positive test.

They take eight pills a day for five days. However, as the latest Merck clinical study suggests, the dose is not high. Unvaccinated patients who took the drug within five days of the onset of symptoms were shown to have a 50% reduction in hospitalizations and deaths compared to those given placebo.

If the pill is approved, the US government will spend about $ 2.2 billion on benefits for 3.1 million treatment cycles. So one treatment costs about $ 700, which is not the least.

The Pfizer pill should be taken four times a day, but it needs to be combined with a common anti-HIV medicine known as Ritonavir. The whole treatment lasts 5 days.

Although it sounds absurd that an infected person should also take an anti-HIV drug, it is important. This medicine acts as a booster for the coronavirus. Ritonvair can strengthen Paxlovid by staying active in the body for longer.

According to data from Pfizer, the combination of these two drugs can reduce the chance of hospitalization and death by up to 89%.

Pfizer’s goals are spectacular. By the end of 2021, it plans to produce as many drugs as needed to cure 180,000 people. By the end of 2022, the number of pills needed to cure 50 million people should be in place.

source: Unsplash / Volodymyr Hrychchenko

Experts recommend vaccination

Today, coronavirus is still a dangerous disease that kills people around the world. However, this could change once the pills have been approved. The studies of both medicines were aimed at people who chose not to take the vaccination option. However, these drugs do not mean freedom for the unvaccinated. The demands on hospitals are huge not only in Slovakia, but also abroad.

Experts are urging people to consider vaccinations. As the doctor pointed out Anthony Fauci, more important than treating the disease is to prevent infections. The advantage of vaccination is that it is and will be free compared to pills.

Sources: CNBC, White House