AstraZeneca’s Evusheld (tixagevimab and cilgavimab, formerly AZD7442), a long-acting antibody combination, has been recommended for marketing authorisation in the European Union (EU) for the treatment of adults and adolescents (aged 12 years and older weighing at least 40 kg) with COVID‑19 who do not require supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of progressing to severe COVID‑19.
The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency based its positive opinion on results from the TACKLE Phase III COVID-19 treatment trial which showed one intramuscular (IM) dose of Evusheld provided clinically and statistically significant protection against progression to severe COVID-19 or death from any cause compared to placebo. Evusheld treatment earlier in the disease course led to more favourable outcomes. TACKLE was conducted in non-hospitalised adults with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who were symptomatic for seven days or less.90% of trial participants were at high risk of progression to severe COVID-19 due to co-morbidities or age.Evusheld was generally well tolerated in the trial.1
Michel Goldman, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, Institute for Interdisciplinary Innovation in Healthcare, Université Libre de Bruxelles, and former Executive Director of the European Innovative Medicines Initiative, said: “Despite the remarkable efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines in the overall population, patients with an impaired immune system remain at very high risk to develop severe COVID-19 requiring hospitalisation. For high-risk patients, there is a major need for tolerable and effective therapies that can be used to block COVID-19 progression and prevent poor outcomes. As we head into the autumn and winter months when COVID-19 infections may rise, Evusheld represents an important new treatment option to protect patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus against severe disease and death.”
Iskra Reic, Executive Vice President, Vaccines and Immune Therapies, AstraZeneca, said: “Evusheld has already made an important difference around the world helping prevent COVID-19 infections in vulnerable populations who can’t mount an adequate response to COVID-19 vaccination. This positive CHMP opinion underscores Evusheld’s potential as a COVID-19 treatment for patients at increased risk of progressing to severe disease.”
The recommended dose of Evusheld for treatment in the EU is 300mg of tixagevimab and 300mg of cilgavimab, administered as two separate, sequential IM injections.
Evusheld been shown to retain in vitro neutralisation of Omicron BA.5, which is currently the dominant SARS-CoV-2 variant in Europe.2 Real-world evidence generated to date has demonstrated significantly lower rates of symptomatic COVID-19 and/or hospitalisation/death for immunocompromised patients receiving Evusheld compared to control arms. This includes real-world evidence collected while Omicron BA.5, BA.4, BA.2, BA.1 and BA.1.1 were circulating.3-6
Evusheld was granted for pre-exposure prophylaxis (prevention) of COVID-19 in a broad population of adults and adolescents earlier this year and is already available in a majority of countries in Europe.
AstraZeneca anticipates that the European Commission will shortly complete its review of the CHMP positive opinion to determine whether to grant marketing authorisation for treatment of COVID-19 in appropriate populations.
Notes
TACKLE
TACKLE is a Phase III, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-centre trial assessing the safety and efficacy of a single 600mg IM dose of Evusheld (300mg each of cilgavimab and tixagevimab) compared to placebo for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19. The trial was conducted in 95 sites in the US, Latin America, Europe and Japan. 903 participants were randomised (1:1) to receive either Evusheld (n = 452) or saline placebo (n = 451), administered in two separate, sequential IM injections.
Participants were adults 18 years-old and over who had mild-to-moderate COVID-19 and were symptomatic for seven days or less. Participants had a documented laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, as determined by a molecular test (antigen or nucleic acid) from any respiratory tract specimen (e.g. oropharyngeal, nasopharyngeal, or nasal swab or saliva) collected no more than three days prior to day 1. Participants were not vaccinated against COVID-19 at the time of screening.
Detailed results from the TACKLE trial published in showed Evusheld significantly reduced the relative risk of progressing to severe COVID-19 or death (from any cause) by 50% (95% confidence interval [CI] 15, 71; p=0.010) through day 29 compared to placebo in non-hospitalised patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 who were symptomatic for seven days or less, the trial’s primary endpoint. In pre-specified analyses of participants who received treatment within three days of symptom onset, Evusheld reduced the risk of developing severe COVID-19 or death (from any cause) by 88% compared to placebo (95% CI 9, 98), and the risk reduction was 67% (95% CI 31, 84) compared with placebo when participants received Evusheld within five days of symptom onset.1
Evusheld was generally well tolerated in the trial. Adverse events (AEs) occurred more frequently in the placebo group (163/451; 36%) than the Evusheld group (132/452; 29%). The most common AE was COVID-19 pneumonia, occurring in 49 participants (11%) in the placebo group and 26 participants (6%) in the Evusheld group. Serious AEs occurred in 54 participants (12%) in the placebo group and 33 participants (7%) in the Evusheld group. There were six COVID-19-reported deaths in the placebo group and three in the Evusheld group.1
Evusheld
Evusheld, formerly known as AZD7442, is a combination of two long-acting antibodies – tixagevimab (AZD8895) and cilgavimab (AZD1061) – derived from B-cells donated by convalescent patients after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Discovered by Vanderbilt University Medical Center and licensed to AstraZeneca in June 2020, the human monoclonal antibodies bind to distinct sites on the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein7 and were optimised by AstraZeneca with half-life extension and reduction of Fc effector function and complement C1q binding.8 The half-life extension more than triples the durability of its action compared to conventional antibodies;9-11 data from the PROVENT Phase III trial show protection lasting six months.12 The reduced Fc effector function aims to minimise the risk of antibody-dependent enhancement of disease – a phenomenon in which virus-specific antibodies promote, rather than inhibit, infection and/or disease.13
Evusheld is authorised for use for pre-exposure prophylaxis (prevention) of COVID-19 in the US (emergency use), EU, Japan and many other countries. Evusheld is approved for treatment of those with risk factors for severe SARS-CoV-2 infection in Japan. Regulatory submissions are progressing for both prevention and treatment indications around the world.
Evusheld is being developed with support from the US government, including federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services; Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority in partnership with the Department of Defense; Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense, under Contract No. W911QY-21-9-0001.
Under the terms of the licensing agreement with Vanderbilt, AstraZeneca will pay single-digit royalties on future net sales.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca (LSE/STO/Nasdaq: AZN) is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialisation of prescription medicines in Oncology, Rare Diseases, and BioPharmaceuticals, including Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism, and Respiratory & Immunology. Based in Cambridge, UK, AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide. Please visit and follow the Company on Twitter .
