Major chloroquine supporter cites study dismissed for lack of evidence

During her deposition at the Senate’s Covid hearings committee, oncologist Nise Yamaguchi was grilled for her defense of chloroquine as a potential treatment against the coronavirus. 

She offered to speak before the inquiry after allegations that she served as an informal consultant to President Jair Bolsonaro during the health crisis. Senators wanted more insight on why the government supported the use of an antimalarial drug against Covid-19 and gambled on the idea that allowing the virus to spread unchecked would allow the population to achieve herd immunity. 

One senator bombarded Dr. Yamaguchi with questions about virology — stating that, as an oncologist, she is out of her league when it comes to fighting an airborne virus.

One of the studies she mentioned to corroborate her support of chloroquine was discontinued last year due to a lack of evidence of the drug’s efficacy. The committee’s rapporteur, meanwhile, listed 13 inconsistencies in Dr. Yamaguchi’s testimony.

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