In the UK, someone has an asthma attack every 10 seconds. Four people with asthma and 85 people with COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) die&nbsp;every day.
Now, new research has shown that an already existing drug could be repurposed in emergencies to bring down those numbers drastically.
According to findings published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine&nbsp;on November 28, injecting patients with Benralizumab during an attack, or exacerbation, reduced the need for further treatment by 30%.
This could be a game-changer for millions of people with asthma and COPD, scientists say.
The new research, led by scientists from King's College London and sponsored by the University of Oxford, is significant given that steroids have been the go-to form of treatment for asthma and COPD for nearly 50 years.
Benralizumab reduces lung inflammation by targeting specific white blood cells called eosinophils. It is currently used to treat severe asthma. The King&rsquo;s College study shows it can be used to treat &ldquo;eosinophilic exacerbations&rdquo;, which cause up to 30% of COPD flare-ups and almost 50% of asthma attacks.
Involving symptoms such as wheezing, coughing and chest tightness, eosinophilic exacerbations&nbsp;are due to inflammation resulting from high amounts of eosinophils. They&nbsp;can become more frequent as the disease progresses, leading to irreversible lung damage in some cases.
Steroids can reduce inflammation in the lungs but have severe side-effects such as diabetes and osteoporosis. Furthermore, many patients &ldquo;fail&rdquo;&nbsp;treatment and need repeated courses of steroids, re-hospitalization or die within 90 days.
The multi-centre ABRA trial was conducted at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Guy&rsquo;s and St Thomas&rsquo;&nbsp;NHS Foundation Trust. Lead investigator of the trial Professor Mona Bafadhel from King&rsquo;s College London said: &ldquo;Benralizumab is a safe and effective drug already used to manage severe asthma. We've used the drug in a different way&mdash;at the point of an exacerbation&mdash;to show that it's more effective than steroid tablets, which is the only treatment currently available. The big advance in the ABRA study is the finding that targeted therapy works in asthma and COPD attacks. Instead of giving everyone the same treatment, we found targeting the highest risk patients with very targeted treatment, with the right level of inflammation was much better than guessing what treatment they needed.&rdquo;
The Benralizumab injection was administered by healthcare professionals in the study but can be potentially administered safely at home, or in the Emergency Department.
Dr Sanjay Ramakrishnan, Clinical Senior Lecturer at the University of Western Australia, who is the first author of the ABRA trial and started the work while at the University of Oxford, said: &ldquo;Our study shows massive promise for asthma and COPD treatment. COPD is the third leading cause of death worldwide but treatment for the condition is stuck in the 20th century. We need to provide these patients with life-saving options before their time runs out.&rdquo;
This research was conducted with support from AstraZeneca UK Ltd.

A single injection was more effective than steroid tablets.

Game-changing research says Benralizumab shot lowers need for further treatment by 30%

New Hope for Patients with Asthma, COPD

Game-changing research says Benralizumab shot lowers need for further treatment by 30%

December 1, 2024 | 22:04 IST