The EU’s drug regulator has approved the use of two monoclonal antibody treatments for Covid-19, clearing the way for the use of the Regeneron-Roche and Celltrion therapies amid a rise in cases on the continent.
In a statement released by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on Thursday, the regulator recommended authorization of the Regeneron-Roche treatment for adults and young people over the age of 12, while suggesting the Celltrion one should only be used in adults.
Regeneron-Roche’s Ronapreve and Celltrion’s Regkirona are the first monoclonal antibody treatments for Covid to be recommended for market authorization by the EMA’s human medicines committee (CHMP).
The treatments work by attaching themselves to a specific target – in this case, the spike protein in the coronavirus – helping to alleviate symptoms and reduce the risk of hospitalization and death.
The approval comes as the EU wrestles with rising Covid cases in member states as the winter months encroach, with a number of health services concerned they will struggle to cope with the combination of coronavirus and seasonal flu infections.
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