Will tocilizumab make COVID-19 worse?

Tocilizumab may not make COVID-19 worse. Tocilizumab has been approved for the treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalized adult patients who are receiving systemic corticosteroids and require supplemental oxygen, non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). One study showed promising results using tocilizumab in treating COVID-19 patients.

Tocilizumab is a potential recombinant monoclonal antibody against IL-6. Previous studies have evaluated the efficacy of tocilizumab in the treatment of COVID-19 and showed that the all-cause mortality of COVID-19 between tocilizumab and the control group was 16.3% and 24.1%, respectively. However, this difference was not statistically significant (95% CI = 0.31–1.22). In addition, the risk of ICU admission was similar between the tocilizumab and control groups (35.1% vs. 15.8%, 95% CI=0.33–6.78). From a clinical perspective, there is no clear evidence that tocilizumab provides clear benefit to patients with COVID-19 infection.

TocilizumabThe original drug has been launched in China and has been included in the medical insurance. Due to its short time on the market, the second-line treatment of systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis is still limited to traditional treatments for rheumatoid arthritisDMARDs To treat patients whose disease activity has decreased by less than 50% in 3 to 6 months, Tocilizumab injection can only be used as directed by the doctor. Its price is around RMB 8,600, which is relatively expensive. The price of the European version of tocilizumab original drug available overseas is around around RMB 14,000 (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate). The ingredients and efficacy of the two drugs are basically the same. Currently, there are no generic drugs produced and marketed overseas, and patients can choose by themselves.