'Game-changing' drug allows children with allergies to eat foods that would have killed them

A groundbreaking study has revealed that a drug typically used to treat asthma could dramatically reduce the risk of life-threatening allergic reactions in children with multiple food allergies. The findings suggest that the monoclonal antibody omalizumab might allow hundreds of thousands of children to safely consume foods that previously posed a deadly danger. The research, led by scientists at Stanford Medicine, examined the effects of omalizumab on 117 children aged an average of seven years old. All participants had severe allergies to peanuts and at least two additional foods, including milk, eggs, wheat, cashews, hazelnuts, and walnuts. Half of the children received eight weeks of omalizumab followed by standard oral immunotherapy, while the other half were given omalizumab for the entire year through injections administered every two weeks or once a month. The results showed that nearly a third of the children treated with omalizumab alone were able to tolerate 4 grams, approximately a teaspoon, of each of their three allergenic foods at the end of the treatment period. This is significantly higher than the less than 20 percent of children receiving standard immunotherapy who achieved similar outcomes. Additionally, over 70 percent of those treated with omalizumab could safely manage accidental exposures to their allergens, compared to just 40 percent of those on conventional therapy. The study further demonstrated that at the highest level tested, equivalent to a full serving of the allergenic food, a quarter of the omalizumab-treated children were able to consume all three of their allergens without experiencing a severe reaction. In contrast, 27 percent of those undergoing standard immunotherapy developed anaphylaxis upon exposure, while only 2 percent of the omalizumab group did so. None of the children in the omalizumab group experienced serious adverse reactions requiring immediate medical intervention, whereas over 30 percent of the standard treatment group needed urgent care. Omalizumab works by binding to and neutralizing the proteins responsible for triggering allergic responses within the body. It is currently approved in the United States for preventing allergic reactions, but its use for treating food allergies has yet to be officially sanctioned by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) in the United Kingdom. Food allergies have become increasingly prevalent, with the number of individuals affected in the UK doubling between 2008 and 2018. Globally, approximately 220 million people experience allergic reactions to specific foods, and around two million in the UK have a diagnosed food allergy. While many experience only mild symptoms such as itching or digestive discomfort, about a quarter of these individuals progress to anaphylaxis, a potentially fatal condition characterized by swelling of the airways, loss of consciousness, and possible cardiac arrest. The researchers emphasized that although the study's findings are promising, they acknowledged that the significant differences in effectiveness between the two treatment groups could be influenced by the relatively high dropout rate among those receiving standard immunotherapy. Despite this limitation, the team expressed optimism about the potential of omalizumab to offer safer and more effective options for managing severe food allergies.