PANORAMIC study: help find effective early treatments for COVID-19

17 February 2022

We’re raising awareness about PANORAMIC – a UK-wide clinical study looking at new antiviral treatments for COVID-19, to help make sure everyone has the opportunity to take part in the trial

The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly exacerbated and further exposed the scope and scale of inequalities in society and in healthcare outcomes.

Through our new strategy Delivering equality, improving diversity and fostering inclusion, we have committed to tackling discrimination and supporting the reduction of health inequalities through the work that we do, as well as using our influence to support or work with other stakeholders to do this.

We’re taking this opportunity to raise awareness about PANORAMIC – a UK-wide national priority clinical study, to find out how effective new antiviral treatments are in the UK population, so that the NHS can develop plans for making these treatments more widely available to people who would benefit from them the most, by getting better sooner and reducing the need for hospitalisation. 

The UK’s medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), is the first in the world to approve an antiviral agent for the treatment of early symptoms of COVID-19, and it is also approved by the Health Research Authority.

About the study

PANORAMIC is run by researchers at the University of Oxford and is currently recruiting thousands at risk of serious illness from COVID-19 to take part in the study and to help gather the evidence as quickly as possible, to understand how these treatments may be rolled out more widely.

Large scale studies carried out in countries outside of the UK so far have generated optimism that new antiviral medicines such as MOLNUPRIAVIR could help people recover faster, reduce symptom severity and, consequently the need for people to be admitted to hospital.

The study is randomised to standard care alone, or to the treatment arm which involves a 5-day course of the antiviral taken by mouth with standard care. It will look at people who have received a recent positive PCR or lateral flow test for COVID-19 and are aged 50+, or 18-49 years old with an underlying health condition.

Encouraging participation

Underserved communities, such as those from ethnic minority backgrounds and people living with learning disabilities, have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, and have traditionally been underrepresented in medical research.

It’s important that everyone has the opportunity to take part in the trial.  Professor Mahendra Patel, Inclusion and Diversity Lead for the study, explains more about this:

“We want to reach out to all communities in all four countries of the UK and to ensure that the PANORAMIC study is as inclusive as possible and accessible to all regardless of background, where they live, ethnicity or socioeconomic status.  We’ve been working with a diverse range of community and religious organisations and their leaders as well as healthcare professionals to develop a host of resources and help raise further awareness of the study.  The PANORAMIC website also includes short videos about how to join the study in a number of different languages along with other resource materials.

"The trial is bringing together GP practices, NHS 111, Test and Trace, Care Homes, pharmacy through its different settings, and other health and social care providers in the UK, to actively identify potential participants, invite them to take part and support their participation. Pharmacy teams can play an important role in raising awareness about the study and support greater recruitment of volunteers from underserved and diverse backgrounds, ensuring that it’s as inclusive as possible.”

Find out more about the trial, including resources for healthcare professionals and potential participants on the PANORAMIC website