Clinical trials of two Ebola treatments begin in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The World Health Organization announced on Thursday the start of clinical trials for two antiviral therapeutic approaches against the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It is also being examined whether combining the two antiviral drugs provides additional benefits for patients infected with Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is currently no vaccine or treatment.

In May, Congo witnessed an outbreak of the Ebola virus with this strain, with Congolese authorities reporting more than 1,400 laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases so far.

By the end of last June, the number of deaths resulting from the disease exceeded 400 people, and the death rate rose to 31.2%.

“Even without approved treatments, people recover from this disease, but of course, we can save more lives with safe and effective treatments in our toolkit,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

“We urgently need treatments to help people infected with Bundibugyo virus,” said Amanda Rojek, who led the study and is a professor at the Institute of Epidemiology at the University of Oxford. “One of the most important lessons from the recent outbreak is that research must be conducted alongside the response, not after it.”

For his part, Congolese Health Minister Roger Campa said that the clinical study gave hope to patients, their families and affected communities.

He added that the findings could help save lives not only during the current outbreak but also enhance preparedness for future pandemics.