Case study: Nurse from Surrey is taking part in the world-leading PANORAMIC COVID-19 antiviral trial

Natalie Akenzua-Sanderson, 44, from Westcott in Surrey tested positive for COVID-19 in January and she was contacted by a research nurse from her GP surgery about taking part in The Platform Adaptive trial of NOvel antiviRals for eArly treatMent of covid-19 In the Community (PANORAMIC) trial.  

The PANORAMIC trial has been set up to rapidly assess antiviral treatments. The purpose of this clinical trial is to find new treatments that help those suffering with COVID-19 at home and in the community to get better quicker without needing to be treated in hospital.

Natalie said: “I have asthma so I was eligible to join the trial. I decided to take part because  we need to find more treatments for COVID-19 and find ways to try to limit hospital admissions. It was nice to be involved in something positive and helpful. I’m a clinical nurse specialist and I have had a lot of experience of COVID-19 in a work setting. I knew I was going to be off work for a few days and by being on the trial I knew I could still be doing something useful from home.

“I was randomly selected to the ‘usual standard of NHS care’ arm. I was disappointed to not receive the antiviral as you feel like you are doing more by taking the treatment and it could help me get better quicker, but I know how important it is to have a control group.”

A comparison is needed so that the study team can clearly see any difference between those who received the treatment compared to those who didn’t.

Natalie continued: “I was not aware of the PANORAMIC trial before my surgery called me. If I had already been aware, I would have joined the trial by directly signing up on the website. I was happy to have received the call as it would have been a shame to miss out.”

Dr Tamsin Sevenoaks, Clinical Research Lead for Dorking Healthcare Federation and GP at Brockwood Medical Practice said: “The research team at Dorking Healthcare Federation is proud to host the PANORAMIC trial. We are delighted to be able to give our patients and people in our local community the opportunity to access innovative, new antiviral treatments which have the potential to improve symptoms and reduce hospital admissions for people with COVID-19.

“However, the only way we can do this is by members of the public getting involved in the PANORAMIC trial. People can join the trial if they have a positive COVID-19 test, are within five days from the onset of symptoms - and are aged 50 and over, or between 18 to 49 years old with underlying health conditions that make them clinically more vulnerable, such as asthma or obesity.”

PANORAMIC is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and led by Oxford University’s Primary Care Clinical Trials Unit, while delivery of the trial is supported by the NIHR Clinical Research Network.

For further information, please visit the PANORAMIC trial website.