Zydus Cadila’s shares have jumped over 4% to close at over ₹570 a piece on Friday. Cadila said in its Phase III clinical trials, the therapy had shown better clinical improvement in the patients suffering from COVID-19.
This was after the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) gave emergency approval for its anti-viral drug Pegylated Interferon alpha-2b, ‘Virafin’ for treating moderate COVID-19 infections in adult. Sharvil Patel, MD said the drug will be available in the market in next few days.
Virafin’ in treating moderate COVID-19 infection in adults. A single dose subcutaneous regimen of the antiviral Virafin will make the treatment more convenient for the patients.
When administered early on during COVID, Virafin will help patients recover faster and avoid much of the complications. Virafin will be available on the prescription of medical specialist for use in hospital/institutional setup.
In the multicentric trial conducted in 20-25 centers across India, Virafin had shown lesser need for supplemental oxygen, clearly indicating that it was able to control respiratory distress and failure which has been one of the major challenges in treating COVID-19. The drug has also shown efficacy against other viral infections.
In its Phase III clinical trials, the therapy had shown better clinical improvement in the patients suffering from COVID-19. During the trials, a higher proportion of patients administered with PegIFN arm were RT PCR negative by day 7. The drug ensures faster viral clearance and has several add-on advantages compared to other anti-viral agents.
Cadila Healthcare is a global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of healthcare therapies.
