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Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

fiercebiotech.com

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Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#711

Post by djrogers »

matsemann wrote: post #178
djrogers wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds like the consequence of not taking it is a 0.5% chance of death, so probably not a lot of running for those who understand COVID death rates.

It seems to me that you're one of those not understanding COVID death rates, though. Firstly, even though I doubt your number a bit, even a 1/200 chance of death is mighty high enough for most people to seek treatment for something. Secondly, if you're already infected, the pill is probably less risky than those 1/200. Thirdly, the chance of death isn't equal for everyone. A healthy young person might have a 10x redu…

GP stated that "the consequence of not taking it is death", which is demonstrably false, and specifically what I was referring to.

Also, the current mortality rate overall in the USA for Covid is less than 0.1% - in fact it's less than 0.02%. 46M confirmed cases, and 751k deaths (not all confirmed to be caused by COVID)...

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#712

Post by eganist »

foolinaround wrote: post #334
shusaku wrote: post #19

I think it’s hard to overstate what a big deal this is for science. This is a completely novel molecule that appears effective as an antiviral. This would a huge achievement for the field of drug design, and will hopefully lead to all kinds of great medicine.

> completely novel molecule Can someone please ELI5 what makes this unique from others?

Reducing this quote mentioned elsewhere:

> PF-07321332 is designed to block the activity of [a specific] enzyme that the coronavirus needs to replicate. Co-administration with a low dose of ritonavir helps slow [the breakdown] of PF-07321332 in order for it to remain active in the body for longer periods of time at higher concentrations to help combat the virus.

It's a two-part drug. PF-07321332 is the new and shiny thing that impairs a crucial enzyme for the virus, while the pre-existing drug ritonavir lets PF-07321332 last longer, making it more clinically useful.

That's my take on it.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#713

Post by ImaCake »

charles_f wrote: post #332

> compared to 41 hospitalizations and 10 deaths in the placebo cohort This makes me weirdly sad. Can you imagine entering the trial for a long sought drug against a deadly disease that turn out to be working, and end up in the control group? I know that there's more to it (it's necessary, they knew, it could have not worked, plainly be nocive, etc.) but it's like being unlucky twice in a row and die out of that while…

It is sad and unfortunately needed. You will note they stopped this study at the first “interim analysis”. One of the really important reasons such interim analyses are done is precisely to stop a trial when it so obviously works. They then switch anyone in the placebo group to the real drug.

It is difficult to overstate just how much thought and argument has gone into clinical trial design in the last half century. It may seem detached and unfeeling, but basically every step is carefully considered compassion, ethics, and a desire for unambiguous causal truth of drug effectiveness.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#714

Post by mchusma »

delecti wrote: post #669
GhettoComputers wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who is the market for this? The assumption is that you give it ASAP and people want to take it. If people aren’t interested in vaccinations they may not want it either, and the vaccines are already very effective at preventing these issues.

I think skepticism of vaccines largely doesn't transfer to the broader medical field. The ineffective fad treatments (ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine) are still medicine, but are still "popular" with vaccine skeptics. It's not rational, but I think vaccine skepticism is largely not rational to begin with.

Anecdotally, hearing from doctors working in COVID wards, they consist almost entirely of anti-vaxxers who are now seeking (and receiving) treatments only recently approved. So while not everyone will take this, I think probably many would once they have symptoms.

That said, this does work better it seems if taken early, before the anti-vax sentiment may have worn off. Hard to say.

What it does signal is really the "end of the pandemic". We have both a vaccine (now approved for kids) and a cure. That sounds like it to me.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#715

Post by dboreham »

jdhn wrote: post #445
GhettoComputers wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who is the market for this? The assumption is that you give it ASAP and people want to take it. If people aren’t interested in vaccinations they may not want it either, and the vaccines are already very effective at preventing these issues.

I'd say that this will appeal to people who are covid vaccine skeptical. If you're skeptical of the mRNA vaccines, you'd probably be in favor of this treatment than the vaccines.

Because _absolutely_ _anything_ is less dangerous than mRNA.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#716

Post by ImaCake »

anonuser123456 wrote: post #646

Does this molecule inhibit replication of related coronaviruses or is it highly specific to SARS-CoV-2?

Wikipedia suggests they first tried it on a lethal cat coronavirus. And the enzyme it inhibits, 3CL, is found in all coronaviriae. So one suspects this works against most coronaviruses.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#717

Post by orra »

jdhn wrote: post #445
GhettoComputers wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who is the market for this? The assumption is that you give it ASAP and people want to take it. If people aren’t interested in vaccinations they may not want it either, and the vaccines are already very effective at preventing these issues.

I'd say that this will appeal to people who are covid vaccine skeptical. If you're skeptical of the mRNA vaccines, you'd probably be in favor of this treatment than the vaccines.

I'm not so certain. People who for whatever irrational reason don't want an mRNA vaccine can take a viral vector vaccine. Yet they don't.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#718

Post by busymom0 »

rob_c wrote: post #677
deworms wrote: post #668

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By now you should have noticed that you're not "getting back on with your lives" no matter how good a boy you are and how many freedoms you give up. You should have resisted this from the start, this is your choice.

Frankly given the work I've done demonstrating the anti science direction policy has taken and the work I've done to call out the bad "science" since the start you should be thankful for the work I've done. As for further "resistance" as soon as the 5G anti-vax nutters started i started looking out for me by putting money in the bank. My response from idiots insulting me over the last 2 years is too stop carrying abo…

>5G anti-vax nutters

I have yet to meet anyone who's unvaxxed because they think of some 5g conspiracy. I smell corporate media type elitism in your comment.

Re: Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral cuts hospitalization, death by 85%

#719

Post by JanSt »

GhettoComputers wrote: post #360
cblconfederate wrote: post #282

I hope this proves to be real going forward. The vaccination route seems to be hitting a deadend as a way to end the pandemic. The pill will have to be cheap and available over the counter, it makes no sense not to subsidize this.

They didn’t mention side effects at all.

I think less than in the placebo group, so none really
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