On Apr. 2, 2020, Novartis announced plans to initiate a phase III clinical trial in collaboration with Incyte to evaluate the use of Jakavi (ruxolitinib) for treatment of a type of severe immune overreaction called cytokine storm that can lead to life-threatening respiratory complications in patients with COVID-19

The proposed trial will assess Jakavi in combination with standard of care (SoC) therapy, compared to SoC therapy alone, in patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia as a result of SARS-CoV-2 infection.