Xofluza highly effective in preventing influenza in the household setting

Japanese drugmaker Shionogi (TYO: 4507) says that the full results from the positive Phase III BLOCKSTONE study investigating its in-house developed Xofluza (baloxavir marboxil) as a post-exposure prophylaxis treatment to prevent influenza in household members, has been published in The New England Journal of Medicine on July 8, 2020.

Shionogi and Swiss pharma giant Roche (ROG: SIX) are in a license and collaboration agreement to further develop and commercialize Xofluza, under which Roche holds worldwide rights to the drug,  excluding Japan and Taiwan, where the rights are retained exclusively by Shionogi.

In the BLOCKSTONE study, following exposure to a person with confirmed influenza, preventive treatment with Xofluza significantly reduced the proportion of household contacts who developed clinical influenza, compared with placebo. The prophylactic effects of Xofluza were also observed in people at high-risk of influenza related complications, as well as in children under 12 years old, irrespective of vaccine status. The risk of influenza infection, in addition to clinical influenza was reduced in participants treated with Xofluza compared to those treated with placebo.