WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Novant Health has partnered up with a biotechnology company to conduct a phase II clinical trial on a possible treatment for COVID-19.

Dr. Nadar Pourhassan is president and CEO of CytoDyn, a company that develops leronlimab, which is an antibody that fights viruses and illnesses. 

Leronlimab was tested on HIV and breast cancer patients in the first phase of the trial.

Pourhassan explained that he re-directed the study to focus on COVID-19 patients because of the pandemic, and he said they're seeing promising results so far.

A total of 75 mild to moderate COVID-19 patients will be chosen for this six-week study where they'll be injected with the drug.

This study will be conducted at three Novant Health locations in North Carolina.

"This is an amazing opportunity, not just for Novant Health, but for the patients who are in our service area, the patients that we're privileged to care for, and we were able to re-direct or pivot from other research priorities to immediately address the pandemic,"  Director of Research and Innovation at Novant Health Mark J. King said.

Novant Health is the first site in the Southeastern U.S. to start this phase II trial and the second clinical trial site in the whole country.

Pourhassan said the next and hopefully final stage will be to perform a clinical trial on 390 patients with severe to critical COVID-19.