Antibody Cocktail: All You Need to Know

After the former United States President Donald Trump used the Antibody Cocktail shot for COVID-19 treatment last year, the therapy came into the limelight in India as well. Developed by Regeneron and Roche, the therapy is literally a cocktail of Casirivimab and Imdevimab and is said to reduce the chances of hospitalisation by 70% in COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms. Roche India and Cipla Limited have announced the good news is that the first batch of Antibody Cocktail is now available in India, and the second batch will be made available by mid of June.

Read further to explore more about the Antibody Cocktail.

What is an Antibody Cocktail?

Antibody Cocktail is a cocktail of two monoclonal antibodies, namely Casirivimab and Imdevimab. Antibodies refer to proteins that a human body generates in order to protect itself from any disease. Whereas monoclonal antibodies are the ones artificially created in a laboratory that is made to fight a particular disease.

• Antibody Cocktail (Casirivimab and Imdevimab) is a medical product that you can obtain by showing a medical prescription by a registered medical practitioner
• Casirivimab and Imdevimab can be administered in an environment where the healthcare providers have the medications required to treat an infusion reaction, like anaphylaxis
• It takes approximately 20-30 minutes for the intravenous medication. There are two syringes each of Casirivimab and Imdevimab used concurrently at four different areas on the thigh or abdomen
• Patients shall be monitored during infusion, after the infusion for at least an hour, and 15-30 minutes after subcutaneous injection.

Every pack of Antibody Cocktail comes with a small container of Casirimab (1200 mg) and one of Imdevimab (1200 mg) with a total of 2400 mg. Dosage for one patient is a combined dose of 600 mg of Casirivimab and 600 mg of Imdevimab, which means 1200 mg in all, that is administered by intravenous infusion or subcutaneous route. Kindly note that the vial needs to be stored at 2°C to 8°C and if the first dose has been opened for a patient, then the second dose shall be used within 48 hours of storage for another patient.

Who Should Take an Antibody Cocktail?

An Antibody Cocktail is used to treat patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms as well as those adults who are at high risk of developing the disease. Most suited for high-risk “COVID-19 patients” the therapy should be administered within 48-72 hours after a patient is tested positive for COVID-19.

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However, the pediatric patients who are aged 12 years or above and weigh at least 40 kg are only recommended to be given the dose. The therapy is not advised for those who got hospitalised and required oxygen therapy due to COVID-19.

How Can I Get an Antibody Cocktail?

In India, the Antibody Cocktail drug (Casirivimab and Imdevimab) will be made available through Cipla’s distribution network. Both private and public healthcare institutions can enquire about the same to their nearest Cipla distributor to get it.

What is The Price of an Antibody Cocktail?

Each patient dose, i.e. a combined dose of 1200 mg (600 mg of Casirivimab and Imdevimab each) will be available at Rs. 59,750, which includes all the taxes. Whereas the Maximum Retail Price of a multidose pack is Rs. 119,500, which includes all taxes too. Please be informed that every pack can treat two patients in this case of a multi-dose pack.

Bottom Line

Sharing the results of phase III global trials in high-risk COVID-19 patients who are not hospitalised, its developer Roche in March announced that Antibody Cocktail therapy noticeably reduced the risk of hospitalisation death by 70% as compared to anything that seems like a real medical treatment. Another good news is that it evidently shortened the duration of symptoms by four days. In short, Casirivimab and Imdevimab are efficacious against the widest spread variants and are capable of reducing the risk of losing its neutralisation potency against new emerging variants.

Source: https://www.cipla.com/press-releases-statements/Roche-Cipla-announce-arrival-of-first-batch-of-antibody-cocktail-drug-Casirivimab-Imdevimab-India 

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Disclaimer: This article is issued in the general public interest and meant for general information purposes only. Readers are advised not to rely on the contents of the article as conclusive in nature and should research further or consult an expert in this regard.