This is a personal and unusual letter to my friends around the globe. I am writing to you in the context of this global pandemic which has claimed the lives of over 2 million people around the globe. We are witnessing often-conflicting political, socio-economic and for-profit motives affecting pandemic response, with dramatic impact especially on developing nations.
I have given the following matter a lot of time and energy, interviewing many people. I believe that many nations are still unaware that ivermectin is a widely-available low-cost drug—used for over 40 years for treatment of parasitic infections—which prevents transmission, hastens recovery, decreases hospitalizations and decreases mortality in COVID-19, all with a strong safety profile.
I urge you to read my summary article below. It is all taken from publicly-available sources on the Internet.
- If you disagree or take no interest in my opinion, that is of course fine with me.
- If you like what I’ve written, but do not wish to take action, I would encourage you to please forward this to others who might be interested.
- If you agree, and want more information, I invite you to write to my assistant and senior advisor David at drthschirrmacher.projects@gmail.com to request an introductory 60-minute Zoom call concerning a low-cost therapeutic protocol which has shown great promise in both prevention and early treatment of COVID-19. As David is not from the medical profession—rather a long-term technology and business expert—he explains information in everyday language with well-structured slides; you will surely be able to understand everything clearly. During the Zoom conversation you will learn about ivermectin, its use and mechanism against COVID-19, and its drug safety profile. David will discuss the regulatory landscape, and spend some time reviewing pandemic response in countries and regions which have been early adopters of Ivermectin. He will also offer to connect you with experts from the FLCCC (FLCCC.net), E-BMC or others around the globe who are deeply experienced in ivermectin-based treatments.
- If you are of the medical profession, have close strategic contacts in the medical profession, or if you are connected with politicians who have responsibility in this area (e.g., Ministers of Health, etc.), please contact David at drthschirrmacher.projects@gmail.com to arrange for a private zoom call connecting them with professors and experts from FLCCC or E-BMC; we promise advice from top-ranking scientists. This comes without any obligation; if you are not convinced afterwards, no problem. Your confidentiality is assured. Nothing will be publicized concerning these calls.
This is a personal project of mine, and not affiliated with any of the ministries with whom I work. Our objective in this project is to educate national and religious leaders in the potential of ivermectin as a bridge until vaccines become available, or as an option to help those who for some reason cannot get vaccines … with the hopes that lives will be saved and the impact of the pandemic will be reduced.
Disclaimer
The following summary is intended for educational purposes only and does not replace independent professional judgement. Statements of fact and opinions expressed in this document are personal opinions of mine and not the opinions of any of the organizations with which I am affiliated, nor of my representatives. Nothing in this document should be taken as medical advice. Sick individuals should speak with their primary care physician to discuss any symptoms and appropriate treatment. I and people working with me on this initiative (such as David) volunteering our time and not benefiting in any way financially, and we do not endorse or approve, nor do we assume any responsibility for the content, accuracy or completeness of the information presented.
Ivermectin-based treatments are safe & effective for COVID-19 … could save many lives & speed economic recovery
Earlier this month, Frontline Covid Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC.net)[1] and Evidence-Based Medicine Consultancy Ltd (E-BMC Ltd)[2] co-launched the I-MASS Protocol for countries seeking to use ivermectin-based treatments for both prevention and at home treatment of COVID-19. This is a critical step in developing safe, inexpensive and highly-scalable recommendations for governments seeking solutions for the pandemic. Prior to I-MASS we have already seen numerous regions & countries employ large-scale ivermectin-based prevention & treatment programs, notably Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico City (Figure 1), and Indian states of Goa, Karnataka and Uttarakhand. Similar success stories can be found in Panama (Figure 2), the Dominican Republic, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Figure 1: Hospitalizations, Fatalities & Mobility following Ivermectin-based Test & Treat Program in Mexico (Source: Juan Chamie @jjchamie) Used with permission of FLCCC, https://covid19criticalcare.com.
Figure 2: COVID-19 Cases & Fatalities in Panama before and after Ivermectin adoption for early treatment (Source: Juan Chamie @jjchamie) Used with permission of FLCCC, https://covid19criticalcare.com.
Ivermectin is an anti-parasitic medicine whose discovery won the Nobel Prize in 2015. It has proven highly potent anti-viral (including SARS-CoV-2) and anti-inflammatory properties and exhibits multiple mechanisms of inhibition, with overwhelming scientific evidence backing its use against COVID-19 as documented in Dr. Paul Marik’s extensive “Guide to the Management of COVID-19”. The disease transitions rapidly through a viral replication period (post-exposure incubation & symptomatic) and an inflammatory period, requiring different pharmacological treatments in each phase (Figure 3).
Figure 3: The Phases of COVID-19. Viral replication is severely diminished/absent by time of hospitalization. Non-viable RNA fragments of SARS-CoV-2 provoke overwhelming inflammatory response (Source Dr. Pierre Kory, FLCCC) Used with permission of FLCCC, https://covid19criticalcare.com.
Ivermectin has been shown to prevent transmission of COVID-19 pre- or post-exposure, and hastens recovery, decreases hospitalization & mortality in patients with COVID-19. Where much-hyped medications such as hydroxychloroquine provide unclear or no benefit in early phases, and even trend to harm in the inflammatory phase, ivermectin provides a benefit in all stages of the disease (Figure 4).
Figure 4: Pharmacological therapy for COVID-19 by stage of illness: What has worked and what has failed (based on randomized controlled trials). (Source Dr. Paul Marik, A Guide to the Management of COVID-19, FLCCC) Used with permission of FLCCC, https://covid19criticalcare.com.
Numerous controlled clinical trials from multiple centers and countries worldwide are reporting consistent, large improvements in COVID-19 patient outcomes when treated with ivermectin. Ivermectin is recognized globally as an essential medicine. It is exceedingly safe with a safety record spanning 3.7 billion doses over 40 years worldwide. It has a better safety profile than remdesivir, ibuprofen or Aspirin.
“Ivermectin is one of the world’s safest, cheapest and most widely available drugs … The studies we presented to the NIH revealed high levels of statistical significance showing large magnitude benefit in transmission rates, need for hospitalization and death,”
according to Dr. Kory, who was a resource for the US Senate Congress on COVID-19. It is off-patent and can therefore be produced in a cost-efficient manner ensuring equity and global access. Ivermectin use leads to far lower case-fatality rates in regions with widespread use. Finally, due to its mechanism of action, the effects of ivermectin are independent of SARS-CoV2 strain. Ivermectin is believed to block import of viral proteins into the human cell nucleus by inhibiting viral enzymes needed for viral replication, and by preventing viral suppression of the human immune response.
Numerous indicators suggest, however, that a disinformation campaign against ivermectin is keeping needed treatment from those who need it most. All COVID-19 vaccines currently in use are being used under Emergency Use Authorizations (EUAs), which mandate that no alternative cure exists on the market. Were national regulators to approve a cheap, off-patent medication such as ivermectin, EUAs for these vaccines could be impacted, costing major losses to pharmaceutical companies. According to pharmaceutical Industry Analyst, Josh Schimmer, “the total market for COVID-19 vaccines would be worth $100 billion in sales and $40 billion in post-tax profits” (larger than the GDP of many smaller nations), and this does not account for any annual booster shots, if needed. Moreover, pharmaceutical companies are currently heavily invested in lucrative novel treatments. As documented in the 2018 award-winning “Trust Who” documentary by Lilian Franck and Thomas Schlottmann, and chronicled in award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author Gerald Posner’s most recent book “Pharma: Greed, Lies, and the Poisoning of America” (2020), there is much controversy behind the pharmaceutical industry, and its tight relationships with national regulators. There is no need to become a conspiracy theorist to see that certain players are not incented to see the pandemic come to an end quickly, nor would they benefit from wide-spread adoption of a drug like ivermectin. Indeed some are starting to question whether there is a larger human rights question at hand, whether regulatory reform is needed, and doctors in the UK, Canada, US, South Africa and other nations are questioning whether the medical profession is being forced to go against the very Hippocratic oath that so many have committed to.
The ethical question, then, is what our response should be. Future generations will judge us based on our response to this pandemic. People are dying, economies are devastated, nations are under lockdown, and additional health issues are being spawned as a result of these lockdowns. We are not against vaccines, however there will always be some who cannot get a vaccine, and many regions need a bridge until vaccines become available to their citizens. Ivermectin-based treatment protocols exist today for prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The I-MASS Mass Distribution Protocol gives governments guidance in how to widely-deploy these treatments safely across entire populations. The drug is cheap, widely available, and has a proven safety record. It can—and should—be used today to save lives and speed economic recovery.
[1] FLCCC is a U.S based non-profit humanitarian organization made up of renowned, world-expert clinician-researchers whose sole mission over the past year has been to develop and disseminate the most effective treatment protocols for covid-19.
[2] E-BMC Ltd is a UK-based independent medical research company that contributes to the quality of healthcare globally through the rigorous evaluation of medical evidence to support clinical practice guidelines.
One Comment
Indeed.. tq for your article Prof Schirrmacher !! It’s well composed to give a balanced view of how #Ivermectin can benefit our #COVID19 px.. and surely save lives.
Irregardless of our religious, political or national affiliations.. The desire to save lives must be paramount, even more so as we know personally of so many who have lost so much in this trying times..