PH Plans To Import Anti-Flu Drug From Japan After Promising Results In Treating COVID-19

The Philippine government is looking into bringing a Japanese anti-flu medication into the country as it appears to be “very promising” for treating coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients, an official of the Department of Health said Monday, March 30.

“Very promising po siya, mukha po talaga siyang sa ngayon sa mga anti-viral ay ito po ang parang medyo directed po ang treatment towards talagang [sa] COVID-19,” Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo said in an interview.

“Of course... this is a very early development drug, at nakita po na meron siyang positive response sa mga pasyente sa kanya,” he added.


Further, the director-general of the Food and Drug Administration, Domingo said the drug, Avigan, is not yet being produced in commercial quantity and has no distributor in the Philippines yet.

“Kasi nga dinedevelop pa, wala pa po siyang production in commercial quantity pero tinitingnan din po natin kung pano siya maipapasok sa Pilipinas,” he said.

China’s ministry of science and technology has reportedly said some clinical trials on favipiravir, an active ingredient of Avigan, has been completed.

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Medical authorities in China said they tested the antiviral drug favipiravir on 340 patients and found it reduces recovery time and improves lung condition of patients, according to the Guardian.

The trials using the drug as a treatment for COVID-19 reportedly showed “very good clinical results.”

According to an earlier report, Avigan, which is being developed by a subsidiary of camera maker Fujifilm, has licensed the patent for favipiravir to Chinese company Zhejiang Hisun Pharmaceutical.

Source: GMA