Incyte to Test Its Cancer Drug Jakafi as a Treatment for COVID-19

Incyte to Test Its Cancer Drug Jakafi as a Treatment for COVID-19

Source: 
Motley Fool
snippet: 

Cancer and a viral infections wouldn't seem to have much in common, but Incyte (NASDAQ:INCY) is testing its blood cancer drug Jakafi in patients with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The connection is that Jakafi helps patients with a blood cancers by inhibiting immune cells -- and some of the most deleterious effects of COVID-19 come from the immune system, which can go haywire while attacking the coronavirus and attack the patients' own cells. The immune system has a positive-feedback loop -- perpetuated by molecules called cytokines -- which can result in what's called a cytokine storm if the immune system isn't put in check.