U.S. clinicians may have a difficult time accessing the infused form of arthritis drug tocilizumab (Actemra) to treat severe COVID-19, as supply is running low.
Demand for Actemra IV has skyrocketed due to the latest wave of COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations driven by the highly transmissible delta variant, drugmaker Genentech announced Monday. In the past two weeks alone, demand for the drug shot up to 400% of pre-COVID levels and continues to increase.
The Food and Drug Administration in June authorized Actemra IV for emergency use only in the treatment of adults and children hospitalized with COVID-19. In the United States, it is temporarily out of stock in its 200-mg and 400-mg dose formulations, and the 80-mg dose supply is running short, said Genentech, part of Roche. The injectable form of the drug, approved only to treat arthritis and other inflammatory-related conditions (not COVID-19), remains available, the company added.
The next scheduled Actemra IV shipments are expected to arrive by the end of August. “However, if the pandemic continues to spread at its current pace, we anticipate additional periods of stockout in the weeks and months ahead,” Genentech said.
In its infused form, Actemra can be used to treat hospitalized people with COVID-19 who are receiving systemic corticosteroids and require supplemental oxygen, mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, according to the FDA. It is not authorized for use in outpatients with the disease.
