The groundbreaking RECOVERY trial, celebrated for its discovery of four effective treatments for COVID-19, is broadening its horizons by venturing into the realm of flu treatments.
Seasonal flu epidemics globally claim the lives of an estimated 290,000 to 650,000 people each year, yet effective flu treatments for severe cases have remained elusive despite nearly a century of knowledge about the virus’s existence.
The expansion of the RECOVERY trial aims to address this long-standing issue. For decades, few large-scale clinical trials have focused on treatments for patients hospitalised with influenza.
The RECOVERY trial’s streamlined design, large-scale approach, and seamless integration into routine healthcare have contributed to its success in combating COVID-19. Now, these attributes position it to enhance the care of patients suffering from severe influenza.
Sir Martin Landray, Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at Oxford Population Health and Joint Chief Investigator for RECOVERY, said: “RECOVERY was designed to provide a robust test of possible treatments for COVID-19 whilst keeping the burden on hospital staff and the health system to a minimum.
“This approach led to the discovery of effective treatments for COVID-19, such as dexamethasone, which has now saved hundreds of thousands of lives worldwide. We are now expanding this approach to tackle the long-term challenge of influenza.”
How will the RECOVERY trial develop novel flu treatments?
Expanding beyond the UK, this study will include patients hospitalised with confirmed influenza in selected hospital sites in France, Italy, and the Netherlands.
This expansion is made possible through a new partnership between the University of Oxford and Ecraid, the European Clinical Research Alliance on Infectious Diseases.
Furthermore, it will encompass patients in hospitals that have previously participated in RECOVERY in Asia, including India, Indonesia, Nepal, and Vietnam, as well as in Africa, including Ghana and South Africa.
Participants in the trial will be randomly assigned to receive either the usual standard of care or the standard of care supplemented with at least one of the treatments being investigated, which include:
- Oseltamivir: An antiviral medicine, commonly known as Tamiflu, that has shown benefits in treating mild influenza;
- Baloxavir marboxil: Another antiviral medicine, known as Xofluza, which has been licensed to treat uncomplicated, mild influenza; and
- Low-dose corticosteroids: Shown to benefit some patients hospitalised with COVID-19.
Infection rates are rising
The decision to expand the RECOVERY trial into researching flu treatments comes at a crucial time. The 2022–2023 influenza season witnessed a resurgence of influenza virus activity in the EU/EEA countries, reaching nearly pre-pandemic levels.
This resurgence underscores the pressing need for a comprehensive assessment of flu treatments.
Sir Peter Horby, the Moh Family Foundation Professor of Emerging Infectious and Global Health at the Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, and Joint Chief Investigator for the RECOVERY trial, commented: “As well as being the greatest pandemic risk, influenza remains a serious annual scourge.
“In a bad year, as many as 25,000 people in the UK die as a result of influenza. Yet we have no treatments that have been proven to improve outcomes in hospitalised patients.
“By including influenza in the RECOVERY trial, we have the opportunity to change this and find new treatments for this persistent menace.”
As the RECOVERY trial embarks on this new chapter in its mission, it offers hope for developing effective treatments for influenza, potentially saving countless lives and mitigating the annual burden of the flu.
