FDA has fast tracked Destiny Pharma’s lead clinical candidate exeporfinium chloride (XF-73) for the prevention of post-surgical staphylococcal infections such as Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA), following FDA’s acceptance in February 2018 of an Investigational New Drug (IND) Application by the Company for the potentially ground-breaking drug, Destiny Pharma said Thursday.Neil Clark, Chief Executive Officer of Destiny Pharma, getting the Fast Track designation from the FDA for XF-73 means a further recognition of the potential for the drug and the need for an effective prevention for post-surgical staphylococcal infections, such as MRSA, that can result in significant complications for patients and significantly increased costs for hospitals.
“On our analysis of published data, there are approximately 40 million surgeries per annum, in the USA alone, where the patient is at risk of a post-surgical infection. We look forward to continuing our clinical development of XF-73 which remains on track and we expect Phase II data in 2019,” Clarks said.
Destiny Pharma reminded in its press release that XF-73 has been developed from its novel, antimicrobial “XF” drug platform. Unlike traditional antibiotics, Destiny Pharma notes, XF drugs have not been seen to generate bacterial resistance in industry-standard microbiology tests conducted to date and therefore have significant potential to address the global threat of AMR. According to the company’s press release, XF-73 has been shown to kill bacteria very rapidly and therefore may be an effective new treatment in the reduction of bacterial infections in hospital patients, including those caused by MRSA.