Ten patients will be included at the start; the treatment cycle will be for a few weeks with a follow-up period of the same length.

(JNS) The Israel-based biotech company Stero Biotechs has started a small-scale clinical trial at Rabin Medical Center’s Golda Hasharon Campus in Petach Tikvah on the effects of a steroid-Cannabidiol (CBD) treatment on hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

“Steroid treatment is usually the first or second line of treatment for hospitalized patients. CBD enhances the therapeutic effect of steroid treatment and treats the bio-mechanism affected by the virus,” the company said in a press release announcing the clinical trial. “The initial study will evaluate the tolerability, safety and efficacy of the CBD treatment for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 Infections.”

Ten patients will be in the clinical trial; the treatment cycle will be for a few weeks with a follow-up period of the same length. Pending the trial’s success, the company plans to expand to a multi-center clinical trial with an additional 40 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, under FDA clinical trial guidelines and regulations.

“We estimate that our CBD-based treatment can enhance the current treatment of those patients who are suffering life-threatening conditions,” said Stero Biotechs founder and CEO David Bassa.

“Hospitalized COVID-19 patients are mostly being treated with steroids, and our study is planned to demonstrate the benefit of a combined solution with steroid treatments,” he continued. “We are hopeful that this study will lead to faster benefit for the growing number of COVID-19 patients in Israel and around the world.”

Stero Biotechs, founded in 2017 and headquartered in Israel, is a clinical-stage company that focuses on the research and development of novel CBD-based treatment solutions.

Main Photo: Rabin Medical Center in Petach Tikvah, Israel.) Credit: Wikimedia Commons)