MORE RESEACH NEED TO BE DONE

More research needs to be done

It is too early to declare Avigan as an effective treatment for COVID-19 -- more clinical tests will need to be conducted. And the drug, which is owned by Fujifilm Holdings (OTC:FUJIY), has the potential to cause serious birth defects if taken by pregnant women, so it must be used only under proper medical supervision.
Many other pharmaceutical and biotech companies are looking to develop treatments for the potentially deadly disease, or find them in their existing catalogs. Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) has taken what appears to be an early lead in that quest. On Feb. 26, the biotech company initiated two phase 3 clinical trials in several Asian countries to investigate the efficacy of its antiviral drug, remdesivir, as a treatment for COVID-19. Those trials will enroll a total of 1,000 COVID-19 patients, 600 of whom have moderate manifestations of the disease, and 400 of whom are experiencing more severe cases. Patients in the studies will be given oral doses of remdesivir for five or 10 days.