A recent trial by Berlin Cures has sparked renewed hope for a potential treatment for long Covid. However, the trial’s failure to meet expectations has raised concerns about the challenges of developing effective treatments for this complex disease.
The trial involved participants with long Covid who received an infusion called BC 007, which was originally developed as a treatment for heart disease. The researchers had high hopes that the infusion would alleviate symptoms by reducing autoantibodies in the body.
Despite some promising results from earlier case studies, the Phase 2 clinical trial failed to demonstrate significant improvements in symptoms. Berlin Cures announced that it would not conduct further research on the drug due to lack of funding.
However, a separate study at University Hospital Erlangen found that BC 007 did alleviate symptoms in a smaller group of participants who met specific selection criteria. The researchers used more rigorous methods to select participants and track outcomes, which may have contributed to the better results.
The challenges faced by Berlin Cures highlight the difficulties of developing effective treatments for long Covid. One expert said that the trial likely included too broad a group of patients and did not use the best endpoints to capture symptom improvement.
Despite these setbacks, some experts remain optimistic about the potential of BC 007 as a treatment for long Covid. A new company, APTA Therapeutics, has acquired Berlin Cures’ assets and plans to commission a more complete analysis of the trial’s data and conduct further research on the drug.
The development of effective treatments for long Covid will require careful patient selection, rigorous methodology, and collaboration with experts who have lived experience of the disease. Patient-advocates are calling for greater involvement in all stages of the scientific process to ensure that studies truly reflect the real-life experiences and challenges of people with long Covid.
Source: https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/22/long-covid-research-mistakes-to-fix