HOPE IN THE HORIZON FOR A COVID19 CURE AS A NIGERIAN DOCTOR PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN THE SEARCH IN USA

After more than four months of frantically seeking for a cure for the dreaded coronavirus, there is finally some light at the end of the tunnel though it is not uhuru yet as countered by some experts.

It was reported that a drug called Remdesivir has shown some exciting prospect for curing coronavirus patient and might receive accelerated approval from the United States regulatory body.

According to a report on BBC, Remdesivir which was originally developed to treat Ebola was able to reduce the duration of symptoms from 15 days down to 11 in clinical trial at hospitals around the world.

In this March 2020 photo provided by Gilead Sciences, a vial of the investigational drug remdesivir is visually inspected at a Gilead manufacturing site in the United States.

The BBC report noted that the full details of the clinical procedure have not been made public, yet experts have insisted that Remdesivir would be a "fantastic result" if confirmed, but not a "magic bullet" for the disease.

The clinical trial of the drug was run with the full supervision of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the drug was administered on 1,063 people. Some patients were given the drug while others received a placebo (dummy) treatment.

The positive outcome of the test has impressed even Dr Anthony Fauci who runs the NIAID. 

"The data shows remdesivir has a clear-cut, significant, positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery," said, adding that the outcome is a prove that "a drug can block this virus" and were "opening the door to the fact that we now have the capability of treating" patients.

But despite the promise shown by the drug, there are a number of question that experts have said need answers before Remdesivir can receive full approval. 

For instance, what are the actual benefits of the drug? Does it hasten recovery for people who would have recovered anyway? Does it prevent coronavirus patient from requiring the ICU treatment? Does it work better on patients with early diagnoses?

These and many more questions are the answers that scientist are seeking answered to before the drug get a final nod to be deployed as treatment for covid-19.

However, it is important here to point out that Remdesivir is not certified a cure for COVID 19 yet. 

The government-funded study found that patients who took remdesivir recovered faster than patients who did not. It improved recovery time for coronavirus patients from 15 to 11 days.

That's similar to the effect that the influenza drug Tamiflu has on flu. Tamiflu also doesn't cure patients quickly, but can reduce how long they are sick.

"The data shows that remdesivir has a clear-cut, significant, positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery," Fauci said.

About 1,090 people participated in the trial internationally, Fauci said, calling it "the first truly high-powered randomized placebo controlled trial."

The study also showed that 8% of patients who took remdesivir died compared to 11% of patients who received the placebo. However, there were not enough deaths to make those numbers statistically significant.

The US Food and Drug Administration plans to announce an emergency-use authorization for remdesivir, according to The New York Times.

Though promising, Cohen said it was important to clarify that this study did not show remdesivir was a cure. People taking this drug still died.

"There is a legitimate fear that people will hear about this drug and will think, 'Oh my goodness, there is a cure. We don't need to worry about it. We don't need to social distance,'" she said. "That's not the case. It cut the duration of the illness basically by four days. That's important and it shows that the drug works and it allows scientists to do further research in this area.

"But we haven't seen remdesivir save lives yet. People are still taking this drug and dying. That's still happening. So we need to keep that in mind as we talk more about this drug."

And beyond the initial optimism, the study also made clear that remdesivir is far from a cure for Covid-19.

"This is not a blockbuster drug," CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen said.

"When you look at the numbers in terms of what it can do, you're not likely to be blown away by it," said Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent.

In fact, the limitations of the remdesivir study are quite clear: it is only one study, the drug does not prevent death, and it is not widely accessible to the public.

Even the principal investigator behind the clinical trial told CNN on Wednesday that the drug is "not the end of the story" when it comes to treatments for Covid-19.

"We have work to do. We are looking for other therapies. This trial is going to continue," Dr. Andre Kalil said.

Gupta similarly said it was exciting even as he pumped the brakes.

"I'm not one of these guys who likes to jump up and down about things, I'm a realist. But we haven't had anything that has shown any promise. So for that reason, i think it is exciting," he said.

Dr. Babafemi Taiwo, a Nigerian medical professional who is the chief of infectious diseases at Northwestern Medicine, played a major role in the trial. In an interview with CNN, he described the result as very exciting.

New data from a preliminary trial suggests that the drug remdesivir has a positive effect on coronavirus recovery.

"Everything that we've seen so far gives a lot of optimism and hope," says Dr. Babafemi Taiwo, who is leading part of the study on the drug. https://t.co/ZpOyuVK0Fs pic.twitter.com/jxrtMxYmiO

— CNN (@CNN) April 29, 2020

“For the first time we have a large, well-conducted trial” showing a treatment helps, he said. “This is not a miracle drug ... but it’s definitely better than anything we have.”

Dr. Babafemi O. Taiwo is an infectious disease expert who has put in more than 20 years in his field of medicine.

DR BABAFEMI TAIWO

Before he joined the prestigious Northwestern Medicine, he was the Chief, Division of Infectious Diseases, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago.

While he held the job, he also functioned as Director, Clinical Core of the Third Coast Center for AIDS Research, and Leader of the Northwestern University Site of the NIAID-funded AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG).

In his present position at Northwestern University, he leads clinical and translational HIV researchers from infectious diseases, hepatology, neurology, radiology, cardiology and nursing, and also oversees the development and implementation of NIH-sponsored interventional and observational HIV studies. 

Though based in the United States, Dr. Taiwo has also contributed significantly to medical practice in Nigeria.  He has played a key role in the HIV treatment, research and training in Nigeria for about twenty years.

Dr. Taiwo laid the foundation for his inspiring medical career at the College of Medicine Ibadan, and also had his initial medical practice in Nigeria before he left to the US. He is Principal Investigator of the NIH D43 Multidisciplinary NeuroAIDS Training and Research Program in Nigeria.

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