Coronavirus Australia: Vaccine trials begin as hydroxychloroquine deal struck

European experts have advised against its wide usage, but Australia will begin receiving shipments of an anti-malaria drug that could help in treatment of COVID-19 while the CSIRO looks for a vaccine.

European health experts have warned antimalarial drugs should only be used to treat COVID-19 on a wide scale if there is a national emergency or as a last resort, but Australia will soon begin importing them.

Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine became practically household names after an endorsement by US President Donald Trump.

“It’s been around for a long time,” he said of the drugs, “so we know that if things don’t go as planned, it’s not going to kill anybody.”

An Arizona man died soon after when he and his wife took a version of chloroquine used to clean fish tanks.

In the US, the Federal Drug Administration has issued an emergency use authorisation for the antimalarial drugs.

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The health minister said Australia will soon receive hydroxychloroquine. Picture: Gerard Julien/AFP

The European Medicine Agency has now warned there are few circumstances the drugs should be used as a potential treatment for COVID-19, a disease for which there is currently no cure or vaccine.

The two medicines have shown some promising signs of success in some early studies conducted in France and China.

But they can also have serious side effects if you take too much or if you take them with other medications.

“It is very important that patients and healthcare professionals only use chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for their authorised uses or as part of clinical trials or national emergency-use programs for the treatment of COVID-19,” the European Medicine Agency said on Wednesday.

“They must not be used without a prescription and without supervision by a doctor; prescriptions should not be given outside their authorised uses except in the setting of a clinical trial or nationally agreed protocols,” the EMA said in a statement.

There are also fears of shortages particularly of chloroquine, the less risky of the two medicines that is also used to treat arthritis.

Several countries are conducting clinical trials for the drugs as part of their campaigns to quell the COVID-19 pandemic.

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A pharmacist reaches for a bottle of hydroxychloroquine. Australia will soon start receiving the drug. Picture: Mark Moran / The Citizens' Voice via AP

In Australia, Health Minister Greg Hunt announced last night that Australia would soon start receiving shipments of hydroxychloroquine.

“It’s not a perfect cure, it’s not a perfect prevention, it’s not fully proven but there have been some promising trials around the world,” Mr Hunt said on A Current Affair last night.

“This will allow us the capacity to expand those trials in Australia,” he added.

Meanwhile, our national science agency the CSIRO has begun testing potential vaccines.

Its biosecurity facility in Geelong, west of Melbourne, is now testing candidates for a vaccine in preclinical trials.

The trials are expected to take three months and will test on animals.

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Health minister Greg Hunt said the drugs are on their way but aren’t a cure. Picture: AAP / Lukas Coch

The trials come as Australia’s COVID-19 cases reach 4860 and the death toll rises to 21, with Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly on Wednesday warning the virus won’t be beaten without a vaccine.

CSIRO chief executive Dr Larry Marshall has described the testing as a critical milestone while health and biosecurity director Dr Rob Grenfell says it is very significant given the race by staff to get ready.

“Usually it takes one to two years to do this and we have apparently done it in eight weeks, so that’s actually really good,” Dr Grenfell told AAP.

Dr Grenfell understands that one of the vaccine candidates is also being tested overseas and if it is shown to be safe and effective in both trials, there would be a rapid conversion into human trials.

“These types of studies are vital to give us the confidence to move into human studies,” he said.

But he has warned against any “panic buying” of the unproven antimalarial drugs.

“Chloroquine is an old anti-malarial drug we have used before,” Dr Grenfell said on Today Thursday morning. “There were studies that came out of China suggesting it may in fact reduce the damage caused by the virus or even the chance of catching the virus. I am aware there are a couple of studies now that have commenced in Australia to look at how they maybe work. One of the well controlled studies I am aware of is being done by the Australian malarial and infectious diseases in Townsville and I know they have set up a very well controlled study to look at whether or not this works. It is not a reason to go out and buy that drug because it's not proven yet.”

Even if that happens a vaccine is still expected to be 18 months away, so it’s important we still do all the things we can to avoid contracting or spreading COVID-19.

“At the moment, the best thing that we can all do is to maintain our social distancing and self-quarantining to minimise the spread while we’re waiting for effective drugs and vaccines,” Dr Grenfell said.

— With wires