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Fujifilm Ends Avigan Flu Drug Development for COVID-19

October 17, 2022

Fujifilm said it will discontinue development of its anti-influenza drug Avigan (favipiravir) for treatment of COVID-19 following analysis of a late-stage study that showed no significant benefit.

The company began a phase 3 trial in April 2021 for Avigan, which was first approved in Japan in 2014 for treatment of influenza. The trial aimed to include 316 participants with early-onset COVID-19 having risk factors for progression to severe symptoms. But the trial was halted in March with just 84 patients enrolled.

Several factors led to the discontinuation, including improvement in the vaccination rate and the spread of the Omicron variants, which have lower symptom severity rates than other strains, making the determination of the drug’s benefit more difficult, the company said.

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