Flu drug Avigan to be administered on 100 COVID-19 patients in Philippines

Residents of Brgy. Addition Hills in Mandaluyong City lines up to shop for groceries.
The STAR/Michael Varcas

MANILA, Philippines — Anti-flu medication Avigan will be administered to 100 coronavirus patients in the Philippines to test the drug’s efficacy on treating the severe respiratory illness, the Department of Health said Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the country will receive a free supply of Avigan—which is being trialled as potential coronavirus treatment—from Japan in “the coming days.”

The agency is already formulating protocols for the clinical trials.

"We we choose hospitals that will participate in the trial. And from those hospitals, we will have a protocol on how we will choose the patients. Because this is a clinical trial, informed consent should be there," Vergeire said in a mix of Filipino and English.

Avigan—the brand name of the drug favipiravir—was only approved for use in flu outbreaks that are not being effectively addressed by existing medications in Japan.

Clinical trials in China suggested that Avigan could play a role in shortening the recovery time for patients who have contracted the new coronavirus. Currently, there are around five clinical trials ongoing in countries including the United States, Italy and Japan.

Medical researchers and companies around the world are racing to find a cure and a vaccine for the new coronavirus, which has so far infected 3.6 million people and killed 257,303 worldwide.

The Philippines reported 9,684 COVID-19 cases Tuesday. Of the number 1,408 have recovered, while 637 have died. — with report from Agence France-Presse

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