Innovative super flu drug approved in China

Roche China announced Thursday that its innovative influenza drug Xofluza has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration of China for the treatment of acute uncomplicated influenza in people aged 12 and older who are otherwise healthy or at high risk of developing serious complications from influenza.

An innovative cap-dependent endonuclease inhibitor, Xofluza is a first-in-class and currently only single-dose oral medicine approved for flu treatment.

It is able to block the flu virus in 24 hours with one dose, reduce the contagious period and significantly shorten the duration of flu symptoms, therefore offering a more convenient treatment option for patients.

Influenza is a contagious acute respiratory illness with serious consequences. Patients may suffer from complications like pneumonia, bronchitis, and sinusitis, which may lead to hospitalization or even death, thus posing a major threat to public health.

The WHO data showed that some 5%-10% of adults and 20%-30% of children worldwide will contract seasonal flu annually, and it will cause up to 5 million cases of severe illness and kill up to 650,000 people every year.

According to a recent study in China, the country has an average 88,000 excess deaths due to flu-related respiratory diseases each year, accounting for 8.2% of all deaths due to respiratory diseases.

The super flu drug Xofluza helps patients shorten the duration of the illness by more than one day with a single dose. It brings therapeutic benefits to flu patients who are otherwise healthy or at high risk of developing complications from influenza.

Hong Chow, CEO of Roche Pharmaceuticals China, said, "As the globe still faces huge challenges in fighting COVID-19, we are very glad that Xofluza has been approved in China under the accelerated process. We hope that this drug with the new mechanism of action will effectively help the prevention and treatment of potential massive influenza cases in winter and spring seasons with high influenza incidence, and serve as an important supplement to existing clinical treatment programs for influenza."