(Reuters) – Siga Technologies Inc has received requests for the use of its smallpox drug to treat monkeypox, its chief executive officer told Reuters on Thursday, as cases spread in parts of Europe.
There had been no deliveries yet but the company was “well-positioned” in terms of supply, CEO Phil Gomez said.
The drug, tecovirimat (TPOXX; ST-246), was approved in 2018 to treat smallpox in the United States and the family of orthopoxvirus that includes monkeypox and cowpox in the EU. It has been in government stockpiles as part of pandemic preparedness.
“As you can imagine with the outbreak in Europe, we have received requests and we are responding to those as we can. We’re engaged with our colleagues in Europe about the best way to support that response,” Gomez said, without disclosing details on the requests.
Monkeypox cases have now been reported or are suspected in Britain, Canada, Portugal, Spain and the United States. The virus causes fever symptoms as well as a distinctive bumpy rash.
Copenhagen-based drugmaker Bavarian Nordic on Thursday said it had secured a contract with an undisclosed European country to supply its smallpox vaccine, Imvanex (live modified vaccinia virus Ankara), in response to the outbreak.
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