Reuters: Europe’s drugs regulator said on Monday it was evaluating the use of Tocilizumab in hospitalised adults with severe COVID-19, its latest review of a potential coronavirus treatment.

Tocilizumab has shown promise in clinical trials in treating COVID-19, and was approved by U.S. health regulators in June for emergency use in hospitalized COVID-19 patients who needed oxygen.

A large trial in February showed that tocilizumab cut the risk of death among patients hospitalised with severe COVID-19, shortened the time to recovery and reduced the need for mechanical ventilation.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) will carry out an accelerated assessment of the drug, including results from four large studies, it said in a statement. The outcome is expected in mid-October.

Temziva, produced by AryoGen Pharmed is the only biosimilar of this drug worldwide.