The UK’s University of Oxford has announced that it will be leading a trial to determine whether one of the world’s top-selling prescription medicines, adalimumab, is an effective treatment for COVID-19.

Recent studies have shown that patients with COVID-19 already taking anti-TNF drugs — such as adalimumab, for inflammatory bowel disease and inflammatory arthritis — are less likely to be admitted to hospital, the university said in a statement.

The trial, called AVID-CC, will be aimed at treating people in the community, especially in aged-care homes. It will enrol up to 750 patients from community care settings throughout the UK.

The availability of biosimilar versions of the medicine would make it affordable and accessible if the trial is successful, the statement said.