Japan plans HIV drug trials to fight coronavirus as Diamond Princess cases rise

Japan plans to start trials of HIV medications to treat coronavirus patients as an increase in the number of cases poses a growing threat to the economy and public health, the government’s top spokesman said on Tuesday. The government is making “preparations so that clinical trials using HIV medication on the novel coronavirus can start as soon as possible,” Yoshihide Suga told a briefing, but added he could not say how long it might take to approve a drug’s use. A further 88 people tested positive for the virus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined off the port of Yokohama, bringing the total number of infected passengers to 542, the Health Ministry said....