Clinical trials of the Japanese drug Avigan for use as a coronavirus treatment will begin in the Philippines on Monday.
The Philippine government said on Friday it was fast-tracking the trial, which involves a test group of 100 people.
The announcement came after a shipment of 199,000 tablets of Avigan, sent by Japan as part of a grant-in-aid, arrived in Manila on Thursday.
While the Japanese embassy has stressed the effectiveness of the drug – which was intended to treat an outbreak of novel or re-emerging influenza virus infections not treatable by other antiviral drugs – has not been established as effective against the coronavirus, some experts are optimistic it could play a role in treating patients with Covid-19.
The Japanese government approved the manufacture of Avigan, also known as favipiravir,
in 2014, but it never went on to the market.
https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3096555/trials-japanese-anti-flu-drug-avigan-begin-philippine?fbclid=IwAR2ah3tVfIF9rWzIbR2_fanAxzxKp0zzWiY68XM-vWm7Qo091_nmbqZsWLA
