Despite Safety and Efficacy Controversies... "Japan Triples Stockpile of Avigan"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Amid the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), despite controversies over the safety and efficacy of Avigan, one of the candidate treatments, the Japanese government is reportedly planning to expand its stockpile to three times the current amount.

The Japanese government has reflected a plan to increase production of Avigan and stockpile enough for 2 million people within this year in the draft economic measures to be finalized on the 7th, according to a report by Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on the 5th.

According to the report, the dosage of Avigan for one person when used for influenza treatment is 40 tablets, and currently, stockpiles are sufficient for 2 million people. Considering that the dosage for COVID-19 patients is 120 tablets per person, the stockpile will be increased threefold to cover 2 million people.

However, there are quite a few skeptical evaluations regarding the safety and efficacy of Avigan. The American political media outlet Politico recently reported that despite concerns among U.S. officials that "there is insufficient evidence that Avigan can treat COVID-19 and there are risks of side effects," the Donald Trump administration is pressuring for its approval as a treatment.

Previously, Lee Eui-kyung, Commissioner of the Korea Food and Drug Administration, attracted attention by stating that the importation of Avigan was being considered in response to COVID-19, but the Korean government ultimately decided not to import it.

According to an earlier report by Nikkei, a paper by a research team including Southern University of Science and Technology in China, which positively evaluated the efficacy of Avigan, was published in a Chinese scientific journal but was suddenly withdrawn.

According to Nikkei, the withdrawn paper compared 35 patients treated with a drug containing the same ingredient as Avigan and 45 patients treated with anti-HIV drugs, reporting that the average time until the virus was undetectable was 4 days for the Avigan-like drug and 11 days for the anti-HIV drugs.