Health Canada approves drug to treat COVID-19 in immunocompromised patients, AstraZeneca says – CBC

The antibody-based therapy Evusheld previously used to prevent COVID-19 can also be used as a treatment

Oct 19, 2022

Some people in Canada who are particularly vulnerable to illness from COVID-19 have a new injectable treatment option.

Health Canada expanded its authorization for the drug Evusheld to be used as a treatment by those age 12 and older who are immunocompromised, such as organ transplant recipients or people with certain blood cancers, and are unlikely to have enough of an immune response to COVID-19 vaccination alone, drugmaker AstraZeneca said Tuesday in a news release.

In April, the regulator approved the antibody-based therapy to prevent infection, also in vulnerable groups.

While vaccines rely on our immune system to develop targeted antibodies and infection-fighting cells, Evusheld contains two lab-made antibodies called tixagevimab and cilgavimab. These antibodies are designed to linger in the body for months to contain the virus in case of an infection.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/evusheld-treatment-covid-1.6621272