Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has disclosed initiating a later-stage clinical trial of a pill for treating covid-19. The company has currently enrolled 1,140 participants in the trial.
The shift from a jab to a pill will be a breakthrough in treating the pandemic disease that surfaced only last year.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla took to his Twitter account to share the information.
Success against #COVID19 will likely require both vaccines & treatments. We’re pleased to share we’ve started a Phase 2/3 study of our oral antiviral candidate—specifically designed to combat SARS-CoV-2—in non-hospitalized, low-risk adults: https://t.co/su5VtfbWPX
— AlbertBourla (@AlbertBourla) September 1, 2021
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The antiviral drug is being developed for non-hospitalized but symptomatic patients who are not at risk of severe illness leading to hospitalization or death.
If successful, the pill will be used on a broad population of patients who are unwilling for a jab.
“This study is part of a global clinical development program, consisting of multiple ongoing and planned clinical trials to evaluate this early-intervention, outpatient therapeutic candidate for potential use in a broad population of patients.”, said Pfizer in a press release.
So far, more than 218 million have been reported around the globe while 4.5 million have succumbed to it.