A supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for Roche’s Xofluza (baloxavir marboxil) as a treatment to prevent influenza has been approved in the US.
Xofluza is the first single-dose influenza medicine approved for post-exposure prophylaxis.
“With today’s approval, Xofluza is now available as the first single-dose, post-exposure preventive treatment for influenza,” said Levi Garraway, Roche’s Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Product Development.
“We’re hopeful that reducing the burden of influenza may help to mitigate the strain on our healthcare system amid the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Post-exposure prophylaxis with single-dose Xofluza was evaluated in the phase III BLOCKSTONE study, which was recently published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
BLOCKSTONE evaluated Xofluza compared with placebo as a preventive treatment for household members (adults and children) who were living with someone with influenza.
Xofluza showed a statistically significant prophylactic effect on influenza after a single oral dose in people exposed to an infected household contact.
The proportion of household members 12 years of age and older who developed influenza was 1% in participants treated with Xofluza and 13% in the placebo-treated group. Xofluza was well tolerated in this study and no new safety signals were identified.
Xofluza is already FDA-approved to treat acute uncomplicated influenza in people 12 years of age and older who have had influenza symptoms for no more than 48 hours and who are otherwise healthy or at high risk of developing influenza-related complications.
