SIGA Receives Approval from the FDA for Intravenous (IV) Formulation of TPOXX® (tecovirimat)
SIGA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGA), a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the health security market, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the intravenous (IV) formulation of TPOXX for the treatment of smallpox. The IV formulation is an important option for those who are unable to swallow the oral capsules of TPOXX.
“We are grateful to the FDA for their work leading to approval of IV TPOXX, which will provide access to a broader patient population,” said Dr. Dennis Hruby, CSO of SIGA. “We are also appreciative to our colleagues at BARDA who have been working with us for many years to include oral and IV TPOXX in U.S. preparedness efforts and look forward to continuing to work with them on our liquid pediatric formulation.”
The oral formulation of TPOXX (tecovirimat) is approved in the US, Canada and Europe for the treatment of smallpox. The European approval also includes the treatment of monkeypox, cowpox, and complications from immunization with vaccinia. The IV formulation of TPOXX was cited in the recent U.S. president’s budget request as being used to treat a patient in the U.S. with monkeypox.
ABOUT SIGA TECHNOLOGIES, INC. and TPOXX®
SIGA Technologies, Inc. is a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the health security market. Health security comprises countermeasures for biological, chemical, radiological and nuclear attacks (biodefense market), vaccines and therapies for emerging infectious diseases, and health preparedness. Our lead product is TPOXX®, also known as tecovirimat and ST-246®, an orally administered and IV formulation antiviral drug for the treatment of human smallpox disease caused by variola virus. Funding and technical support for this work is provided by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), under the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), under ongoing USG Contract No. 75A50118C00019 (19C). TPOXX is a novel small-molecule drug and the US maintains a supply of TPOXX under Project BioShield. The oral formulation of TPOXX was approved by the FDA for the treatment of smallpox in 2018. The full label is available by clicking here. In September 2018, SIGA signed a contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, for additional procurement and development related to both oral and intravenous formulations of TPOXX. For more information about SIGA, please visit www.siga.com.
About Smallpox
Smallpox is a contagious, disfiguring and often deadly disease that has affected humans for thousands of years. Naturally-occurring smallpox was eradicated worldwide by 1980, the result of an unprecedented global immunization campaign. Samples of smallpox virus have been kept for research purposes. This has led to concerns that smallpox could someday be used as a biological warfare agent. A vaccine can prevent smallpox, but the risk of the current vaccine's side effects is too high to justify routine vaccination for people at low risk of exposure to the smallpox virus.
May 24, 2022
