Olumiant Demonstrates Significant Mortality Reduction in Severe COVID-19 Patients in RECOVERY Trial

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According to the latest results from the RECOVERY trial, in hospitalized severe COVID-19 patients, Eli Lilly and Incyte's oral JAK inhibitor Olumiant (Chinese trade name: 艾乐明, generic name: baricitinib) combined with other drugs reduced the risk of death by 13%.

Olumiant is an oral JAK1/JAK2 inhibitor developed by Eli Lilly and Company under license from Incyte Corporation for the treatment of various inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. In some countries, Olumiant has also been authorized or approved for the treatment of COVID-19.

The RECOVERY trial, led by the University of Oxford, is the world's largest study into treatments for COVID-19 and has involved more than 47,000 participants in the UK. Since March 2020, the trial has tested a range of possible treatments.

Between February and December 2021, 4,008 patients were randomly assigned to receive standard care, and another 4,118 patients were randomly assigned to receive Olumiant plus standard care. The standard care regimens were: (1) tocilizumab + dexamethasone; (2) remdesivir. Tocilizumab and dexamethasone are two anti-inflammatory drugs that have previously been shown to improve survival rates in critically ill COVID-19 patients when used in combination. Remdesivir is an antiviral drug developed by Gilead.

Trial results showed that 12% (513 people) of patients receiving Olumiant plus standard care died within 28 days, compared to 14% (546 people) of those receiving standard care alone. Compared with standard care, the addition of Olumiant to standard care significantly reduced mortality by 13%. Furthermore, Olumiant demonstrated consistent benefits regardless of whether patients received tocilizumab plus dexamethasone or remdesivir as part of their standard care.

Moreover, patients receiving Olumiant plus standard of care were more likely to be discharged within 28 days and less likely to progress to mechanical ventilation or death, with no evidence of increased risk of infection or thrombosis – two potential side effects associated with Olumiant treatment.

These results are consistent with the early findings of Olumiant in treating COVID-19. Early data confirmed a significant impact of Olumiant on mortality, leading to its inclusion in the WHO COVID-19 treatment list earlier this year. However, there was little information in the early trials regarding the combined use of Olumiant and tocilizumab.

Martin Landray, Chief Co-Investigator of the RECOVERY trial, commented that it has now been confirmed that an excessive immune response is a key cause of lung damage in patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19. Compared with previous data, the newly released RECOVERY trial data not only shows that Olumiant can improve survival chances for patients with severe COVID-19 but also demonstrates that its combination with other therapies that help suppress overactive immune responses (such as tocilizumab + dexamethasone) can provide additional therapeutic benefits.

Reference Source: Olumiant benefits additive to other drugs in severe COVID patients