FDA Approves ‘Novel’ Single-Dose Flu Drug – IOTW Report

FDA Approves ‘Novel’ Single-Dose Flu Drug

DC: The Food and Drug Administration approved the first single-dose influenza drug “with a novel mechanism of action” in almost two decades Wednesday, according to an FDA press release.

The drug, which will be sold under the name Xofluza, received “Priority Review” approval after the extremely deadly flu season of 2017-2018. The pill can cut the time a person is sick from 3.3 days to just 2.5 days, according to a study in the U.S. and Japan from 2016 to 2017, reported NBC News.

“This is the first new antiviral flu treatment with a novel mechanism of action approved by the FDA in nearly 20 years,” FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb stated in the press release. “With thousands of people getting the flu every year, and many people becoming seriously ill, having safe and effective treatment alternatives is critical. This novel drug provides an important, additional treatment option. While there are several FDA-approved antiviral drugs to treat flu, they’re not a substitute for yearly vaccination.”

Xofluza works differently than other antiviral flu medications like Tamiflu and Relenza, reported NBC News. Its most common side effects are diarrhea and bronchitis. It is only for patients who are 12 years or older, according to the FDA.

Xofluza’s wholesale cost is $150. The company that makes the drug, San Francisco-based Genentech, offers a coupon so that patients can have a lower co-pay if their health insurance covers Xofluza.  more

9 Comments on FDA Approves ‘Novel’ Single-Dose Flu Drug

  1. Garlinaise garlic pill, one -2 per day, or 1/4 head of delicious home grown garlic sauted in butter and lightly salted per day works for me. If I get the flu on this regimen, then I’m supposed to suffer or die. Never got a flu shot, never will, unless I’m slammed into a nursing home and they drug me into it.

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  2. I have stopped taking the flu shot and I’ve never had a horrible flu for the last 15 years. The year after my last flu shot, I was so sick I couldn’t get off the couch for most of 2 weeks, barely ate or drank anything. Never again!

    When I get sick now, it’s minor. 1/4 of the symptoms.

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