Daewoong Pharmaceutical has received approval for a Phase 3 trial to evaluate the efficacy of Foistar in severely ill coronavirus patients in Korea.

The company said on Monday that the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved the trial of the investigational oral protease inhibitor in combination with remdesivir, the current standard antiviral to combat Covid-19, at the end of last year.

Foistar, which has been used to treat chronic pancreatitis, is being repurposed to treat coronavirus patients by the pharmaceutical company.

The Phase 3 trial will involve 1,072 patients at National Medical Center. The company has already conducted Phase 2 and 3 trials in coronavirus patients with mild symptoms. But the company concluded the interim Phase 2a study did not reach statistical significance.

By Chung Ji-sung and Minu Kim

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]