3 firms get clinical trial approval for alternative Covid-19 drugs

The drug 2-DG is not yet an approved drug, but there have been multiple studies across the globe for treatment of cancers

Domestic players are working on multiple off-label therapies that may be useful for treating Covid-19. The drug regulator is evaluating several of these proposals that have come from firms such as Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL), Piramal Pharma, and Cadila Healthcare, among others. 

Hyderabad-based DRL, for example, has been asked to conduct phase-3 clinical trial of a potential cancer drug (2-Deoxy-d-Glucose oral power, or 2-DG) to see if it works as a therapy for Covid-19 patients. 

The drug 2-DG stops glucose supply to the cells, which then start dying. It is a potential cancer drug as it works by preventing supply of glucose