Trial drug had caused swelling in monkeys
But the German company which developed the TGN1412 drug said the monkey’s symptoms were completely different from those suffered by the men being treated at Northwick Park Hospital in north-west London.
One of the six men injected with the drug eight days ago is Ryan Flanagan, a 21-year-old student with family in Ireland and Britain.
The condition of four of the men is continuing to improve after almost a week in intensive care, doctors said yesterday.
Three of the four have now been removed from organ support, said Dr Ganesh Suntharalingam, clinical director of intensive care at the hospital.
But two other patients, including Mr Flanagan, who also goes by the surname Wilson, remained in a critical condition and despite some early signs of improvement, it was too early to comment on their prognosis, he added.
The previously healthy men had volunteered to test the medication, developed by TeGenero, which was designed to treat rheumatoid arthritis, leukaemia and multiple sclerosis.
When given the drug the men “went down like dominoes”, vomiting, screaming in pain and breaking out in fevers, according to a witness, who was given a placebo in the tests.
The medical research company responsible for the drug trial, Parexel, has insisted it followed correct procedures.
TeGenero said last night that two of the 20 monkeys used in pre-clinical tests had experienced a “transient increase in size of lymph nodes” but said this was completely different from the symptoms in the men.
A statement from the company said the small chance of temporary swelling after using the drug was included on information submitted to British regulators and on the consent form signed by the volunteers before the trial.
