For the first time in 50 years, a new way to treat serious asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) attacks has been found. This breakthrough is expected to be a "gamechanger" for patients.
A trial found offering patients an injection was more effective than the current care of steroid tablets, and cuts the need for further treatment by 30%, The Guardian reported.
The results, published in the Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal, could be transformative for millions of people with asthma and COPD around the world, the report said.
The breakthrough Lancet study shows an injection during a flare up was more effective than current standard care of steroid tablets, showing it cut the need for further treatment by 30%, according to the Mirror.
Quoting the lead investigator Professor Mona Bafadhel, of King's College London, the Mirror report said: "This could be a game-changer for people with asthma and COPD. Treatment for asthma and COPD exacerbations have not changed in 50 years, despite causing 3.8 million deaths worldwide a year combined. Benralizumab is a safe and effective drug already used to manage severe asthma. We've used the drug in a different way to show that it's more effective than steroid tablets, which is the only treatment currently available."
Benralizumab is a monoclonal antibody that targets specific white blood cells, called eosinophils, to reduce lung inflammation. It is used as a repeat treatment for severe asthma at a low dose, but the trial found a higher single dose could be very effective if injected at the time of a flare-up, according to The Guardian.
The main challenge with the new injection given subcutaneously is that it costs Rs 1.48 lakh for a 30 mg dose.
The Indian Express quoting Dr Sundeep Salvi , a member of the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) scientific committee, reports that a phase III trial will be required to establish the new breakthrough's efficacy and usefulness.
“This huge cost can be afforded by very few people in India,” Dr Salvi was quoted as saying by the IE.