Talking about Evusheld - a new treatment to prevent COVID-19

Evusheld is a new treatment to prevent COVID-19 in people whose immune response is poor. 

Evusheld is made up of tixagevimab and cilgavimab which are treatments called antiviral monoclonal antibodies. They work against the virus that causes COVID-19 and prevent the virus from entering human cells. Evusheld is designed for use in adults who are unlikely to develop an immune response from COVID-19 vaccines or people who cannot have the vaccines. 

Evusheld will be used before a person has exposure to COVID-19. This is in order to prevent disease (known as ‘pre-exposure prophylaxis’). 

For most people, the best way to prevent infection is vaccination. Evusheld is not a substitute for vaccination in individuals for whom COVID-19 vaccination is recommended.

Although Evusheld was approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in March 2022, this approval only states whether a drug is safe and effective. It does not mean the treatment has been approved for use on the NHS and the Government has yet to make a decision on this. There is still not enough data to know how effective Evusheld is against Omicron or the duration of its effect against this variant.

We don’t know if or when Evusheld will be made available, but will keep people informed when we know more. 

Further information can be found in the patient information leaflet for Evusheld (tixagevimab/cilgavimab).