What is "trifluridine"

n. An antiherpesvirus drug, used primarily on the eye.

Trifluridine (also called trifluorothymidine or TFT) is an anti- herpesvirus antiviral drug, used primarily on the eye. It was sold under the trade name, Viroptic, by Glaxo Wellcome, now merged into GlaxoSmithKline. The brand is now owned by Monarch Pharmaceuticals, which is wholly owned by King Pharmaceuticals.

It is a nucleoside analogue, a modified form of deoxyuridine, similar enough to be incorporated into viral DNA replication, but the -CF group added to the uracil component blocks base pairing, thus interfering with DNA replication.

It is a component of the experimental anti-cancer drug TAS-102.

A Cochrane Systematic Review showed that trifluridine was a more effective treatment than idoxuridine or vidarabine, significantly increasing the relative number of successfully healed eyes in 14 days.