Coronavirus: Local Doctor Says Common Organ Transplant Drug Could Help Prevent Complications
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - Could a 40-year-old drug in plentiful supply prevent the most severe COVID-19 complications? In the battle for survival against the virus, it's a question Dr. Hooman Noorchasm can't stop thinking about.
The Harvard trained Cardiothoracic Surgeon and Cellular Immunologist believes that Cyclosporine, the same drug that fights rejection in transplant patients, could stop life-threatening lung damage from COVID-19.
"Most transplant surgeons and people involved with the care of transplant patients are quite familiar with what this drug is," said Noorchasm. "The kill mechanism for this virus seems to be an out of control immune response."
To attack the virus, the body produces a storm of inflammatory chemicals, known as a "cytokine storm". Instead of stopping once the immune system kills the virus, the inflammation keeps building. When the lungs are involved, patients can lose the ability to breathe.
"By the time patients are on the ventilator they already have a very high mortality risk," says Noorchasm. "I think the Achilles heel of this problem is going to be turning off the kill mechanism and that seems to be a cytokine storm syndrome."
Dr. Noorchasm believes Cyclosporine may provide the quickest way to do this for the greatest number of COVID-19 patients. There is no shortage of the drug and according to Noorchasm, it's vastly available internationally, is inexpensive and there's a lot of safety data on it.
"I think you can envision a scenario where Cyclosporine is actually used to block COVID-19's kill mechanism by really dampening the hyper-immune response that leads these patients to get into the ICU and into critical illness," said Noorchasm.
Dr. Noorchasm expects that Cyclosporine would be prescribed for 7 to 10 days in patients who have moderate COVID-19 symptoms. He is working to get clinical trials started within the next few weeks.
