Tablets from Avigan are on display during a photo opportunity at Fujifilm’s Tokyo headquarters. REUTERS / Issei Kato
Fujifilm Holdings Corp (4901.T) said Wednesday it has begun a new phase III trial of its Avigan drug for COVID-19 in Japan, reviving hopes for a home-grown treatment for the virus.
Domestic approval for the antiviral drug to treat the coronavirus was hit back in December after a panel from the Department of Health said research data was inconclusive.
Fujifilm has evolved over the years from its traditional camera and office solutions to healthcare. [nT9N2LY00R
The new double-blind, placebo-controlled study is targeting patients aged 50 and older, as well as those at risk of developing serious conditions, Fujifilm said in a release.
Avigan, known generically as favipiravir, has been studied in dozens of trials worldwide, and it has been approved as a COVID-19 treatment in Russia, India and Indonesia. But concerns remain, as the drug has been shown to cause birth defects in animal studies.
Japan has already approved Avigan as an emergency flu medicine, and the government last year called on Fujifilm to triple national stockpiles of the drug.
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