As Covid rules are tightening again, a new treatment has been approved for use in the UK.
Its makers are claiming that it could even stand up to the challenges posed by the new Omicron variant.
As the Daily Record reports, the treatment named Xevudy (sotrovimab) has been given the green light or use by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) earlier on Thursday.
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This new treatment is given through an IV as an intravenous infusion over 30 minutes and can reportedly reduce the risk of death and hospitalisation by 79 percent in high risk adults with symptomatic Covid infection, according to clinical trials.
It works by binding the spike protein on the outside of the Covid virus and prevents the virus from attaching to and entering human cells-stopping it in its tracks from replicating in the body.
Scientists say that the drug is at its most effective when taken during the early stages of onset infection and recommended that it should be used as soon as possible, ideally within five days of first experiencing symptoms.
They add that the drug should be give to people who have mild to moderate Covid infection and are at increased risk of developing severe disease.
Experts at the MHRA recommended the rollout of the drug following a “rigorous” review of its safety, quality and effectiveness.
The drug has been produced by GSK and Vir Biotechnology.
And its creators say that preclinical data has shown that the drug “retains activity against key mutations” of the new Omicron variant.
George Scangos, chief executive of Vir, said: "Sotrovimab was deliberately designed with a mutating virus in mind.
"By targeting a highly conserved region of the spike protein that is less likely to mutate, we hoped to address both the current Sars-CoV-2 virus and future variants that we expected would be inevitable.
"This hypothesis has borne out again and again, with its ongoing ability to maintain activity against all tested variants of concern and interest to date, including key mutations found in Omicron, as demonstrated by preclinical data.
"We have every expectation that this positive trend will continue and are working rapidly to confirm its activity against the full combination sequence of Omicron.”
The UK Government has already ordered around 100,000 doses of the drug.
Speaking about the approval of the drug, Dr June Raine of the MHRA said: “I am pleased to say that we now have another safe and effective COVID-19 treatment, Xevudy (sotrovimab), for those at risk of developing severe illness.
“This is yet another therapeutic that has been shown to be effective at protecting those most vulnerable to COVID-19, and signals another significant step forward in our fight against this devastating disease.
“With no compromises on quality, safety and effectiveness, the public can trust that the MHRA have conducted a robust and thorough assessment of all the available data.”
