Coronavirus Patients Rush to Join Studies of Gilead Drug
2020-04-09
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1The new coronavirus COVID-19 made Dr. Jag Singh a patient at his own hospital.
2A lung infection made it difficult for him to breathe.
3His doctors at Massachusetts General said he needed to make a decision about life support while in intensive care.
4Then, they offered him a chance to test remdesivir.
5The experimental drug has had some good results when used against other coronaviruses.
6Singh, a heart specialist, said 'yes' immediately.
7COVID-19 patients around the world have been joining remdesivir studies in the past few weeks.
8The interest has been so great that the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) is expanding its study.
9It has nearly reached its first goal of 440 patients.
10The California company Gilead Sciences makes the drug. It is increasing its own studies too.
11"I would enroll my family" immediately, said Dr. Libby Hohmann.
12She placed Singh and nearly 30 other patients in the NIH study at Massachusetts General.
13For most people, COVID-19 causes moderate symptoms.
14Some patients, however, get a lung infection which requires hospitalization.
15The risk of death is greater for older people and those with other health problems.
16The drug remdesivir has been used in animal testing against two similar coronaviruses, SARS and MERS.
17The drug helped prevent infection and reduced the symptoms if it was taken early.
18The testing is farther along than other possible drugs and may lead to government approval for treatment.
19The drug-maker Gilead has given remdesivir to more than 1,700 patients.
20Its chief executive Dan O'Day wrote that many people have asked for the drug but the company is "taking the ethical, responsible approach."
21He said more people will be helped if studies prove the drug to be safe and effective.
22O'Day said his company has drug treatment for more than 140,000 patients.
23It is providing the drug for free for now.
24It has set a goal of making treatments for 500,000 patients by October and more than a million by the end of the year.
25Gilead also gave remdesivir to China for two studies expected to have results by the end of the month.
26Other studies have begun in Asia and Europe.
27"There's so much anxiety about the disease that the patients are quite interested" and no one offered the chance has refused, said Dr. Arun Sanyal.
28He is the study leader at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
29The NIH study, however, is the most rigorous of all the tests.
30It compares remdesivir to placebos, and neither patients nor doctors know who is getting what until the end of the study.
31I'm Anna Matteo.
1The new coronavirus COVID-19 made Dr. Jag Singh a patient at his own hospital. 2A lung infection made it difficult for him to breathe. His doctors at Massachusetts General said he needed to make a decision about life support while in intensive care. 3Then, they offered him a chance to test remdesivir. The experimental drug has had some good results when used against other coronaviruses. Singh, a heart specialist, said 'yes' immediately. 4COVID-19 patients around the world have been joining remdesivir studies in the past few weeks. 5The interest has been so great that the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) is expanding its study. It has nearly reached its first goal of 440 patients. The California company Gilead Sciences makes the drug. It is increasing its own studies too. 6"I would enroll my family" immediately, said Dr. Libby Hohmann. She placed Singh and nearly 30 other patients in the NIH study at Massachusetts General. 7For most people, COVID-19 causes moderate symptoms. Some patients, however, get a lung infection which requires hospitalization. The risk of death is greater for older people and those with other health problems. 8The drug remdesivir has been used in animal testing against two similar coronaviruses, SARS and MERS. The drug helped prevent infection and reduced the symptoms if it was taken early. The testing is farther along than other possible drugs and may lead to government approval for treatment. 9The drug-maker Gilead has given remdesivir to more than 1,700 patients. Its chief executive Dan O'Day wrote that many people have asked for the drug but the company is "taking the ethical, responsible approach." He said more people will be helped if studies prove the drug to be safe and effective. 10O'Day said his company has drug treatment for more than 140,000 patients. It is providing the drug for free for now. It has set a goal of making treatments for 500,000 patients by October and more than a million by the end of the year. 11Gilead also gave remdesivir to China for two studies expected to have results by the end of the month. Other studies have begun in Asia and Europe. 12"There's so much anxiety about the disease that the patients are quite interested" and no one offered the chance has refused, said Dr. Arun Sanyal. He is the study leader at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. 13The NIH study, however, is the most rigorous of all the tests. It compares remdesivir to placebos, and neither patients nor doctors know who is getting what until the end of the study. 14I'm Anna Matteo. 15The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 16_____________________________________________________________ 17enroll - v. to join or to take part in something 18symptom - n. a change in the body or mind which indicates that a disease is present 19anxiety - n. fear or nervousness about what may happen 20rigorous - adj. doing something with a lot of interest and strength 21placebo- n. a pill or substance that is given to a patient like a drug but that has no physical effect on the patient