Drug developer Veru Inc on Tuesday said it plans to proceed with a late-stage trial of its COVID-19 pill, weeks after the U.S. health regulator declined to authorize the oral drug to treat high-risk patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

It will, however, stop the development of the drug as a potential treatment for prostate cancer as part of its strategy to cut costs.

Veru plans to continue development of the oral drug, sabizabulin, in late-stage studies with high-risk hospitalized influenza patients and COVID-19 patients. It expects to report interim data from the COVID-19 trial next year.

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The company said it was planning to meet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration soon and will communicate details of the late-stage trial after the meeting. 

Additionally, Veru will stop the development of two of its other cancer drug candidates - VERU-100 and zuclomiphene - which it was testing in mid-stage studies for various indications.

Shares of the company rose nearly 3% to $2.09 in afternoon trade.