WORCESTER - As COVID-19 cases rise and the delta variant makes its way into Massachusetts, UMass Memorial Medical Center on Thursday unveiled a new weapon in the fight against the pandemic: monoclonal antibody treatment.
We hope as few patients as possible will need this facility, but if they do, we will be ready,” said Dr. Michael Gustafson, president of UMass Memorial Medical Center, at the unveiling of the treatment trailer, which is parked at the Hahnemann campus.
Monoclonal antibody treatment is a synthetic antibody treatment that mimics the body’s natural response to COVID by blocking the virus’ spike protein from attaching to and infecting other cells, Dr. Sandeed Jubbal explained at the unveiling.
Thus it basically works by stopping the COVID infection in its tracks, preventing a mild case to progress to a serious illness.
It has been shown to be effective in reducing serious illness and death from the virus by up to 87%, Gustafson said, and it is available for COVID patients with mild to moderate cases but who are at risk for serious cases due to comorbidities or age. It can be administered within 10 days of the onset of COVID symptoms.
It is the treatment that President Donald Trump received, and now - thanks to a partnership among UMass Memorial, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the state Department of Public Health - it is available in Worcester.
The mobile unit is one of only 17 such units - including only one other in New England - providing the service in the United States
