(Adds background on tradipitant, COVID-19 treatments; updates
share movement)
Aug 18 (Reuters) - COVID-19 patients with pneumonia improved
faster when treated with Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc's VNDA.O
experimental therapy than those on placebo, the company said on
Tuesday, citing an interim analysis of data from a late-stage
study.
Shares of the U.S. drug developer rose over 13% before the
opening bell.
While the data from 60 patients showed that a 14-day
treatment with the drug, tradipitant, helped speed up clinical
improvements by day seven, the company warned a larger patient
size was needed to confirm the benefit.
So far, Gilead Sciences Inc 's GILD.O antiviral remdesivir
and the generic steroid dexamethasone have been shown to help
patients with COVID-19 in rigorous clinical trials.
The U.S. drug developer, which licensed tradipitant from Eli
Lilly and Co LLY.N in 2012, eventually plans to enroll 300
patients in the late-stage trial. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has imposed a
partial clinical hold on tradipitant trials that are longer than
12 weeks, citing the need for additional studies before testing
the drug in humans beyond that timeframe. A U.S. court sided
with the FDA in January over a legal dispute related to the
agency's decision.
The drug is also being tested as a treatment for various
conditions including atopic dermatitis and motion sickness. The
company says the drug targets a receptor in the body that could
be associated with causing lung injury.
Vanda said the drug's properties as an anti-inflammatory
agent would complement antiviral drugs for COVID-19, if the
results from its analysis were confirmed.
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FACTBOX-Drugmakers rush to develop COVID-19 treatments
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