Eli Lilly and Co said on Tuesday (US time) that the...

Eli Lilly and Co said on Tuesday (US time) that the government-sponsored clinical trial of its COVID-19 antibody treatment similar to one taken by US President Donald Trump has been paused because of a safety concern.
Trump touted the Lilly drug, along with the antibody treatment from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals that he received for his COVID-19, as tantamount to a cure in a video he posted last week.

Trump touted the Lilly drug, along with the antibody treatment from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc that he received for his COVID-19, as virtual "cures" in a video he posted last week.CREDIT:AP
The announcement comes one day after Johnson & Johnson said it was forced to pause a large high-profile trial of its experimental coronavirus vaccine because a volunteer fell ill. J&J said it does not yet know if that person was given the vaccine or a placebo.
AstraZeneca's US trial for its experimental COVID-19 vaccine has also been on hold for over a month after a volunteer in its UK study fell ill. Trials of that vaccine resumed in other regions after a brief halt.

Lilly said earlier this month it was applying for emergency use authorisation (EUA) for the antibody drug, LY-CoV555, for patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 based on data from another clinical trial.
It is not uncommon to pause drug trials to investigate safety concerns, and such actions do not necessarily indicate a serious problem. Because of the urgent need for drugs and vaccines to tackle a pandemic that has claimed over 1 million lives worldwide - and the speed with which they are being developed - these trials have come under intense scrutiny.