COVID-19 antibody treatment credited for relieving hospitals

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)– Jeffrey Caruth credits an investigational treatment called Monoclonal Antibodies for helping him recover from COVID-19.

“I feel that if I hadn’t gotten that treatment, I’m afraid of the possibilities of what could have happened,” says Caruth.

Sick and quarantined, he struggled to breathe.

“It just scares you, you know? It’s not something normal that you really have in your life.”
 
Praying for relief, he traveled to Vanderbilt where he was hooked to an IV for an hour receiving laboratory-made antibodies that target and neutralizes the SARS-CoV-2 virus known as COVID-19.

“I didn’t feel like anything progressed,” Caruth explains. “I felt like I was at the same, which made me happy. And then, as another day went by, I was feeling a little bit better.”

Caruth, like so many others considered high-risk, experienced an improved outcome following treatment. In fact, data shows 97% of those who received the therapy avoided the hospital.

Dr. Karen Bloch is the medical director of the COVID Infusion Clinic at Vanderbilt.

“It’s really mimicking what one’s own immune system would be doing, but doing it in a time before your body had a chance to make its own antibodies,” says Bloch.

She explains, in order for the antibodies to work, they must be given within 10 days of the onset of symptoms. Due to a limited supply of product and resource, currently the treatment is only offered to those who have significant risk factors that make them more likely to be hospitalized.

“While I think this is a wonderful treatment on an individual level,” says Dr. Bloch. “We think we are really benefiting our overall health care system by again preserving hospital beds and trying to optimize resources.”

Caruth is thankful to be here to share his story and says “don’t hesitate” to speak to your doctor about treatment.

To find the closest facility offering Monoclonal Antibody Treatment click here.