A new cannabinoid treatment has been shown to have a ‘significant improvement’ on Covid-19 patients in the early stages of clinical trials.
The ongoing study, led by European-based MGC Pharmaceuticals and medics at the Nazareth Hospital EMMS and Hillel Yaffe Hospital in Israel, measured the effect of an anti-inflammatory spray – known as ArtemiC – on patients with coronavirus.
Researchers say the results from the first 10 patients have proven it to be a safe and effective treatment for the virus, with no adverse effects while showing ‘significant clinical improvement’ in individuals.
The severity of patient’s symptoms was assessed using the National Early Warning Score (NEWS), widely used by hospitals to standardise the detection of and response to acute illness.
Those who were given ArtemiC instead of a placebo all reported higher NEWS scores prior to treatment but all had scores of zero on completion of the 15-day trial.
Four of the patients entered the study with higher than average disease severity and were discharged symptom-free. Patients who used ArtemiC also reported a lower pain severity, with all reporting no pain at all by the end of the trial, suggesting the drug has a significant impact on quality of life as well as clinical improvement.
Dr Elias Hillou, investigator for the clinical trial from Hillel Yaffe Medical Centre, said: “At our hospital, we have had experience in treating Covid-19 patients as one of the leading treatment hospitals in Israel, and unfortunately we have had recurring disappointment with patients deteriorating, with no tools at our disposal to treat this effectively. These preliminary results regarding the safety and the efficacy of ArtemiC for the treatment of Covid-19 patients is very promising.
“We see no deterioration in the clinical situation, for patients who had received the real medication, as expressed by the NEWS score, compared to the group of the placebo group, that had a massive deterioration with one patient near to death, and a need for an ECMO.
He added: “Our aim is to treat 50 patients according to the well-designed clinical research protocol to hopefully demonstrate ArtemiC is safe and efficient for the Covid-19 pandemic battle and helping with effective treatment of infected patients.”
These latest results build on MGC Pharma’s prior successes in recent weeks, with ArtemiC being shown in ‘in-vitro’ studies to reduce the likelihood of Covid-19 patients suffering from a “cytokine storm” – one of the major causes of fatality for those who catch the virus.
The proposed outcome of the trial is to be able to treat the symptoms of Covid-19 before patients need admission to hospital, relieving pressure on healthcare systems across the world. Roby Zomer, co-founder and managing director of MGC Pharma, said: “We are very pleased with the Phase II interim results of ArtemiC which have so far met all primary endpoints while also demonstrating safety of the treatment on the initial 10 patients.
“These results combined with our recent preclinical results are important for designing the protocols and markers for our next Phase IIb clinical trial. We look forward to updating the market as we continue to receive results of this trial.”