News from the Anti-Viral Front

I was very surprised to learn today that we may be just months away from an anti-viral treatment for COVID-19 - a pill that could reduce or eliminate the symptoms, both mild and severe, of the virus.  This is, apparently, not a surprise to those who understand the world of viruses, because anti-viral medications are already playing a big role in our healthcare landscape:

“Oral antivirals have the potential to not only curtail the duration of one’s Covid-19 syndrome, but also have the potential to limit transmission to people in your household if you are sick,” said Timothy Sheahan, a virologist at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill who has helped pioneer the therapies.

Antivirals are already essential treatments for other viral infections, including hepatitis C and HIV. One of the best known is Tamiflu, the widely prescribed pill that can shorten the duration of influenza and reduce the risk of hospitalization if it is given quickly.

I was not familiar with Tamiflu, although the fact that I've never had a serious case of the flu may have something to do with that.  And I keep reading that AIDS is a virus and is treated with an anti-viral, and I keep forgetting.

So now, encouraging news about a COVID anti-viral - by Christmas?  The new year?

At least three promising antivirals for Covid are being tested in clinical trials,* with results expected as soon as late fall or winter, said Carl Dieffenbach, director of the Division of AIDS at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who is overseeing antiviral development.

“I think that we will have answers as to what these pills are capable of within the next several months,” Dieffenbach said.

So - to our short list of things we are pretty sure we'll find in the new world, we can add a medication that will effectively treat COVID - if taken early in the course of the infection.  

This is good news for those of us medically vulnerable folks who are looking ahead to the world of endemic COVID.  If the COVID vaccine can be included in our annual flu shot, and we have medication that will reduce the symptoms and limit transmission, maybe we can upgrade our picture of post-pandemic life.

 * = Here are the study details.