CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance

The unprecedented public health challenge created by COVID-19 called for bold moves, and at Takeda, we quickly realized collaboration would be critical to quickly understanding a potential treatment for the virus.

We know how much stronger we can be as an industry and society when we work together, and this led to us co-founding the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance with CSL Behring which includes leading plasma companies Biopharma Plasma, Biotest, GC Pharma, LFB, NBI, Octapharma and Sanquin.

Over the past year we worked together to develop and manufacture a non-branded plasma-derived medicine called a hyperimmune globulin (H-Ig) as a potential treatment option for people hospitalized with COVID-19 at risk for serious complications. The innovative therapy was evaluated in a multi-national Phase 3 clinical trial led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) that completed in March 2021. While results of the clinical trial were not what we had hoped for, we are proud to have accomplished so much within one year, and in the best interests of patient and public health.

Strong scientific progress is sometimes as much about learning what does not work as it is about learning what does work, and we feel proud that this research may add valuable insights to the community’s understanding of this challenging virus.

We are grateful to the many patients, plasma donors, colleagues, collaborators and external partners including the NIH/NIAID and global regulatory authorities who made this program possible.

Plasma remains a lifeline for thousands of people with rare, chronic and complex diseases who rely on plasma-derived medications. With plasma donations lower than usual through the pandemic, the need for human plasma is more urgent than ever, and Takeda encourages healthy individuals to consider donating.