SILVER SPRINGS, MD.-A drug that has already been approved for asthma and hives may protect people with food allergies from reactions to peanuts, eggs, milk and other foods.
According to an NBC News report, a clinical trial testing the injectable drug Xolair in 165 children and adolescents backed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases found that those treated with the drug were able to eat more of the foods without suffering a reaction.
The Food and Drug Administration announced that it is fast-tracking Xolair to be used against accidental exposure to foods, however, for the drug to get full approval a large-scale clinical trial is needed.
About 2% of adults and between 4% and 8% of children in the U.S. have food allergies, according to the USDA.
According to NBC News’s report, it may be difficult to get insurers to pay for a medication for food allergies and the monthly cost for Xolair for allergic asthma is $3,663.
“The preliminary analysis showed that Xolair significantly increased the amount of peanut, milk, eggs and cashew it took to cause an allergic reaction in children and adolescents with food allergies,” Dr. Larry Tsai, global head of respiratory, allergy and infectious disease product development at Genentech, said in an email to NBC.
