Shionogi’s COVID-19 Oral Medication Shows Significant Efficacy, but Faces a Crisis with 2 Million Treatment Courses Being Destroyed!

Shionogi & Co., one of Japan's leading drugmakers, said in a statement Tuesday that the results of an ongoing late-stage global clinical trial showed that its oral pill treatment for COVID-19 was significantly effective in reducing the spread of the virus. The drug, Ensitrelvir, which is commercially known as Xocova, showed a statistically significant reduction in patients who developed symptoms after home contact with COVID-19, Shionoi said in its statement.

The Phase 3 trial, known as SCORPIO-PEP, involved about 2,400 participants in several countries in the U.S., South America, Africa and Asia. The trial results showed that Ensitrelvir was significantly effective in preventing COVID-19 transmission, especially among participants who developed symptoms after close contact with an infected person.

It is worth noting, however, that in May this year, Shionogi Pharma had commented that Ensitrelvir had failed to show a significant effect in reducing common COVID-19 disease symptoms compared to a placebo. The results of this study, known as the SCORPIO-HR trial, are in stark contrast to the SCORPIO-PEP trial.

Still, in March, the Japanese government fully approved the use of Ensitrelvir. However, while the government bought two million courses of treatment during the pandemic, most of the drugs went unused and will eventually be destroyed, according to media reports. This situation has led to public questioning and discussion about government decision-making and resource allocation.