India's Cadila seeks regulatory approval for Covid-19 drug
Covid vaccine
Indian drugmaker Cadila Healthcare Ltd said on Monday it would seek local regulatory approval to treat Covid-19 patients with an already approved Hepatitis C drug, following promising interim results from a late-stage trial.
A single dose of the Hepatitis C drug when taken early could help Covid-19 patients recover faster and avoid complications seen in the advanced stages of the disease, Cadila said in a statement to stock exchanges.
The drug, known as Pegylated Interferon alpha-2b and branded as "PegiHep" by Cadila, was originally approved for liver disease Hepatitis C and launched in India 10 years ago.
About 91 per cent of patients treated with the drug tested negative for Covid-19 in standard RT-PCR tests by day seven, compared to nearly 79 per cent who were given the standard of care, the company said citing Phase-III clinical trial data.
The news comes as daily coronavirus infections are surging to new highs in India, which has the world's third-highest caseload after the United States and Brazil. India has so far reported close to 12.5 million infections and more than 164,000 deaths.