Remdesivir still included in WHO Solidarity Trial — FDA’s Domingo

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday clarified that antiviral drug remdesivir is still included in the World Health Organization's (WHO) Solidarity Trial for potential COVID-19 vaccines, which the Philippines is participating in.

This, even as a WHO trial reportedly concluded that the drug did not significantly help COVID-19 patients.

"Hindi pa tinigil ng WHO. Nagkaroon sila ng interim report saying na hindi pa sila sigurado sa positive effect ng remdesivir," said FDA director general Eric Domingo on Thursday's Laging Handa media briefing.

"Pero sumulat sila at pinaklaro sa FDA na kasama pa rin sa clinical trial ng solidarity trial ang remdesivir dahil gusto pa rin talaga nilang makakuha ng maraming datos at matignan ang effectivity nito," he added.

At the same time, Domingo pointed out that many other countries are still using remdesivir for clinical trials.

"Hindi naman ito nakasalalay lamang doon sa WHO Solidarity Trial," he said.

Reuters earlier reported that the WHO trial which said remdesivir is not helping COVID-19 patients is reliable, citing a scientist who evaluated it.

"It's a reliable result, don't let anybody tell you otherwise, because they'll try to," said Richard Peto, an independent statistician hired by the WHO to evaluate its solidarity trial.

Gilead Sciences Inc., the manufacturer of remdesiver, had criticized the findings of the WHO in its trial.

Back in August, the city of Manila acquired 2,000 vials of remdesivir for the treatment of active COVID-19 cases

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno said the local government purchased the vials at P6,500 each, a sharp drop from the original price of nearly P20,000, for a total of P13 million.

"Kung saka-sakali kakailanganin pa, bibili pa po tayo, mapangalagaan lang namin kayo, mapataas lang namin ang probabilidad na kapag kayo ay na-infect ng COVID-19, kayo ay mag-recover," he said.

"This is part of our continuous effort to strengthen the medical care for our mild, moderate and severe cases of COVID-19 in Manila," he added. — RSJ, GMA News