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DFV890

Phase 2

COVID-19 Pneumonia, Impaired Respiratory Function | Small molecule | Infectious Disease |Novartis AG|Last Updated: Apr 9, 2026

Success Probability

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Market & Valuation

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Trial Design

RandomizedACTIVE_CONTROLLEDDMC
Total Trials1
Total Enrollment143

FDA Designations

No designations recorded

Clinical trial landscape

DFV890 · 5 trials · 5 indications

Phase 2 4Phase 1 1
NCT06031844A Study to Investigate the Efficacy, Safety, and Tolerability of DFV890 for Inflammatory Marker Reduction in Adult Participants With Coronary Heart Disease and Elevated hsCRPCoronary Heart Disease
COMPLETED24 Analytics
NCT04868968Study of Safety, Tolerability and Efficacy of DFV890 in Participants With Familial Cold Auto-inflammatory Syndrome (FCAS)Familial Cold Autoinflammatory Syndrome
COMPLETED4 Analytics
NCT04886258Study of Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability of DFV890 in Patients With Knee OsteoarthritisSymptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis
COMPLETED115 Analytics
NCT04382053Study of Efficacy and Safety of DV890 in Patients With COVID-19 PneumoniaCOVID-19 Pneumonia, Impaired Respiratory Function
COMPLETED143 Analytics
PHASE2COMPLETED
A Study to Investigate the Efficacy, Safety, and Tolerability of DFV890 for Inflammatory Marker Reduction in Adult Participants With Coronary Heart Disease and Elevated hsCRP
Coronary Heart DiseaseUnlock trial analytics
PHASE2COMPLETED
Study of Safety, Tolerability and Efficacy of DFV890 in Participants With Familial Cold Auto-inflammatory Syndrome (FCAS)
Familial Cold Autoinflammatory SyndromeUnlock trial analytics
PHASE2COMPLETED
Study of Efficacy, Safety and Tolerability of DFV890 in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis
Symptomatic Knee OsteoarthritisUnlock trial analytics
PHASE2COMPLETED
Study of Efficacy and Safety of DV890 in Patients With COVID-19 Pneumonia
COVID-19 Pneumonia, Impaired Respiratory FunctionUnlock trial analytics

Study Endpoints

Primary Endpoints

Ratio to Baseline Serum Levels of IL-6 for DFV890 Based on an Emax Model
Baseline (before first dose of study drug), 3 weeks after the start of a dosing period for DFV890 (between Day 22 and Day 85, depending on treatment sequence assignment)

Serum levels of IL-6 at 3 weeks after the start of a dosing period for DFV890. The circulating serum levels of the cytokine IL-6 were measured by a validated enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assay at a qualified vendor.The Emax model selected for IL-6 analysis was a model with 2 covariates (IL-6 baseline and bodyweight) and 1 random effect.

Ratio to Baseline Serum Levels of IL-18 for DFV890 Based on an Emax Model
Baseline (before first dose of study drug), 3 weeks after the start of a dosing period for DFV890 (between Day 22 and Day 85, depending on treatment sequence assignment)

Serum levels of IL-18 at 3 weeks after the start of a dosing period for DFV890. The circulating serum levels of the cytokine IL-18 were measured by a validated enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assay at a qualified vendor.The Emax model selected for IL-18 analysis was a model with 2 covariates (IL-18 baseline and bodyweight) and 1 random effect.

Ratio of Fold Change From Pre-challenge to the Highest Post-challenge Value of White Cell Count (WCC) Between Treatment and Screening Period
Screening period and treatment period (Day 4): pre cold challenge and up to 8 hours post cold challenge. The duration of the cold challenge was 45 minutes.

A cold challenge was performed during the screening period and on Day 4 of the treatment period. Fold change from pre-challenge to highest post-challenge value of WCC was defined as the ratio of the highest post-challenge WCC value to the pre-challenge WCC value. The ratio of fold change was defined as treatment fold change divided by the screen fold change. A value of less than 1 for the ratio of fold change indicates a lower relative increase of WCC in the treatment than in the screening period, which is a favorable outcome. The log-transformed fold change from pre-challenge to the highest post challenge WCC was analyzed using a log-linear mixed effect model. The analysis was carried out considering the data from -2 to 8 hrs post challenge. The unforeseen screen failure rate and recruitment challenges resulted in early closure of the study. Only 4 out of planned 6 participants were enrolled in the study; thus, the results should be interpreted cautiously.

Change From Baseline in Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) Pain Subscale
Baseline, Week 12

The KOOS questionnaire is a commonly used instrument to assess the patient's perception about their knee and associated problems. The original KOOS consists of 5 subscales. One of those is the pain frequency/severity during functional activities consisting of 9 questions with a recall of 7 days. Each question has 5 standardized answer options with a score from 0 to 4. A normalized score (100 indicating no pain and 0 indicating extreme pain) is calculated for each subscale. Change from baseline in KOOS pain score was analyzed using a mixed effects model for repeated measures (MMRM) including all time-points to compare treatment groups. The model includes baseline, treatment, timepoint, baseline-by-timepoints interaction and treatment-by-timepoints interaction as fixed effects. Missing data is assumed to be Missing at Random (MAR).

APACHE II Severity of Disease Score on Day 15 or on the Day of Discharge (Whichever is Earlier)
up to Day 15

The APACHE II ("Acute Physiology And Chronic Health Evaluation II") is a severity-of-disease classification system. An integer score from 0 to 71 is computed based on several measurements; higher scores correspond to more severe disease and a higher risk of death. In practice, it is rare for any participant to accumulate more than 55 points. APACHE II score was measured on Day 15 or on the day of discharge (whichever was earlier). Participants who died on Day 15 or earlier were assigned the highest observed APACHE II score of any of the participants at any time during the trial (worst case imputation for deaths). Missing data values of the parameters required for the derivation of the APACHE II score were replaced by the last available assessment.

Incidence of Dose-limiting Toxicities (DLTs)
28 days

A dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) is defined as an adverse event or abnormal laboratory value assessed as clinically relevant, occurring during the DLT monitoring period following the first administration of study treatment.

Incidence and severity of Adverse Events (AEs) and Serious Adverse Events (SAEs)
36 months

Incidence and severity of AEs and SAEs by treatment group, including changes in vital signs, electrocardiograms (ECGs) and laboratory values qualifying and reported as AEs.

Incidence of dose interruptions, discontinuations and reductions
36 months

Number of patients with dose adjustments (interruptions, discontinuations and reductions) summarized by treatment group.

Secondary Endpoints

Trough Plasma Concentration (Ctrough)
After the last dose of each 3-week dosing period: Day 22 pre-dose, Day 43 pre-dose, Day 64 pre-dose, or Day 85, depending on treatment sequence assignment
Number of Participants With Treatment Emergent Adverse Events (AEs) and Serious Adverse Events (SAEs)
Adverse events were reported from first dose of study treatment until end of study treatment plus 30 days post treatment, up to a maximum duration of approximately 34 days
Physician Global Assessment of Autoinflammatory Disease Activity
Screening and Treatment (Day 4): 1 hour pre and 2, 3, 5, 9 and 24 hours post. Scheduled time refers to the time post-meal (screening) and to the time post-dose (treatment). The start of the cold challenge is at 1 hour post and the duration is 45 minutes.
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Study Design & Arms

AllocationRANDOMIZED
MaskingDOUBLE
ModelPARALLEL
PurposeTREATMENT

Treatment Arms

ArmTypeDescription
Treatment Sequence 1EXPERIMENTALOn Day 1, participants received 1 tablet of DFV890 matching placebo QD. Participants continued receiving DFV890 oral placebo QD until Day 22 when they started receiving DFV890 10 mg QD. The dose of DFV890 was uptitrated to 25 mg on Day 43 and to 100 mg on Day 64.
Treatment sequence 2EXPERIMENTALOn Day 1, participants received 1 tablet of DFV890 matching placebo QD. Participants continued receiving DFV890 oral placebo QD until Day 22 when they started receiving DFV890 25 mg QD. The dose of DFV890 was uptitrated to 50 mg on Day 43 and to 100 mg on Day 64.
Treatment sequence 3EXPERIMENTALOn Day 1, participants received 1 tablet of DFV890 10 mg QD. Participants continued receiving DFV890 10 mg QD until Day 22 when they started receiving DFV890 25 mg QD. The dose of DFV890 was uptitrated to 50 mg on Day 43 and to 100 mg on Day 64.
Treatment sequence 4PLACEBO_COMPARATOROn Day 1, participants received 1 tablet of DFV890 matching placebo QD. Participants continued receiving DFV890 oral placebo QD until Day 84.
DFV890EXPERIMENTALDFV890
PlaceboPLACEBO_COMPARATORMatching Placebo was administered orally twice per day during 12 weeks.
DFV890 + SoCEXPERIMENTALDFV890 50 mg was administered orally or nasogastrically twice per day (b.i.d) approximately 12 hours apart (morning and evening) for 14 days in addition to SoC.
Standard of Care (SoC)ACTIVE_COMPARATORSoC was used as an active comparator arm.
Dose escalation: DFV890 low doseEXPERIMENTALDFV890 given as single agent at a low dose
Dose escalation: DFV890 high doseEXPERIMENTALDFV890 given as single agent at a high dose
Dose expansion: DFV890 low doseEXPERIMENTALDFV890 given as single agent at a low dose

Interventions

NameTypeDescription
DFV890DRUGOral film-coated tablets of DFV890 once daily
DFV890 PlaceboDRUGOral film-coated tablets of DFV890 placebo once daily
PlaceboDRUGMatching Placebo was administered orally twice per day during 12 weeks.
Standard of Care (SoC)DRUGSoC included a variety of supportive therapies that ranged from the administration of supplementary oxygen to full intensive care support, alongside the use of antiviral treatment, convalescent plasma, corticosteroids, antibiotics or other agents.
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Eligibility Criteria

Age Range18 Years to 85 Years
SexALL
Healthy VolunteersNo
Study Sites7

Inclusion Criteria: * Male and female participants aged between 18 - 85 years (inclusive) at the start of screening will be included. * Subjects must have a body mass index (BMI) within the range of 18 - 45 kg/m2. BMI = Body weight (kg) / \[Height (m)\]2 * Documented spontaneous myocardial infarcti...

Countries:United StatesCanadaFranceGermanyArgentinaCzechiaHungaryRomaniaSlovakiaSpainBrazilDenmarkIndiaMexicoNetherlandsPeruRussiaSouth AfricaHong KongItalySingaporeUnited Kingdom
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Frequently asked questions about DFV890

What is DFV890 used for?

DFV890 is an investigational small molecule being studied for multiple conditions, including symptomatic knee osteoarthritis, COVID-19 pneumonia, impaired respiratory function, coronary heart disease, myeloid diseases, and familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome. It is in Phase 2 clinical development for several of these indications.

Who makes DFV890?

DFV890 is being developed by Novartis AG, a multinational pharmaceutical company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol NVS. The company is conducting clinical trials of DFV890 across multiple countries and indications.

What phase is DFV890 in?

DFV890 is in Phase 2 clinical development. It has completed Phase 2 trials for familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome, symptomatic knee osteoarthritis, and coronary heart disease. A Phase 1 trial for myeloid diseases is active but not recruiting participants.

What clinical trials is DFV890 in?

DFV890 has been studied in several clinical trials. NCT04868968 examined it in familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome, NCT04886258 in knee osteoarthritis, NCT05552469 in myeloid diseases, and NCT06031844 in coronary heart disease with elevated hsCRP. All trials are completed except NCT05552469, which is active but not recruiting.

Is DFV890 FDA approved?

DFV890 is not FDA approved. It is an investigational drug currently in clinical development. It has completed Phase 2 trials for several conditions, but no approval status has been reported. The drug remains under study by Novartis AG.