Healthcare Industry News: bladder cancer
Biopharmaceuticals Distribution
News Release - November 14, 2007
Stellar Pharmaceuticals Inc. Signs Licensing Agreement for Distribution and Sale of NeoVisc(R) in Eastern Europe
Expansion of Stellar's Global Strategy
LONDON, ONTARIO--(Healthcare Sales & Marketing Network)--Nov 14, 2007 -- Stellar Pharmaceuticals Inc. ("Stellar") (CDNX:SLX.V )(OTC BB:SLXCF.OB ), a Canadian pharmaceutical developer and marketer of high quality, cost-effective products for select health care markets, today reported signing a licensing agreement with Torrex Chiesi Pharma GmbH ("Torrex Chiesi"), based in Vienna, Austria in respect of the distribution and sale of NeoVisc®, a product used for the treatment of osteoarthritis, in Eastern Europe. The territory covers a number of countries, including Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Poland, Hungary, Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States ("CIS").
Torrex Chiesi has agreed to obtain all necessary regulatory approvals at its sole cost and will pay Stellar an upfront milestone payment plus a specified transfer price in exchange for the rights to an exclusive license for this territory. This agreement has an initial five year term and may be renewed for an additional three year term with the mutual agreement of both parties.
Peter Riehl, Stellar's President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "This agreement reflects our strategy to license our proprietary products into the global marketplace and we look forward to building a long-term working relationship with Torrex Chiesi. Torrex Chiesi has the sales force reach and expertise to market and sell NeoVisc® effectively in these vast markets. The population base for this territory exceeds 370 million and it is a very exciting market for Stellar to reach." With the approved CE mark for NeoVisc already in place for the European market, revenue from this agreement is expected to commence in early 2008.
Torrex Chiesi Pharma GmbH, based in Vienna, Austria, (a division of Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A., a privately held European pharmaceutical corporation, headquartered in Parma, Italy) is a company involved in the marketing and distribution of medical and hospital supplies in Central and Eastern European countries as well as in the CIS countries. Torrex Chiesi is well placed within the medical community and enjoys excellent relationships with doctors, hospitals and medical clinics. Dr. Wolfgang Harrer, Managing Director of Torrex Chiesi, remarked, "NeoVisc® represents an excellent niche opportunity and we are excited to add the product to our portfolio. Torrex Chiesi has a proven distribution network in place and the expertise and personnel resources to successfully launch NeoVisc®."
Continued Advancement in Implementing International Sales Partnering
Mr. Riehl continued, "The out-licensing of these products is an important component of Stellar's overall growth strategy. The countries of Eastern Europe will join the following list of countries and regions in which NeoVisc is currently licensed: Latin America, Mexico, the Caribbean, Romania, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait and Turkey. Out-licensing agreements are also in place for Uracyst, Stellar's proprietary therapy for the treatment of Interstitial Cystitis, in the United States, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, France, Israel and China."
About NeoVisc®
NeoVisc is a 2 mL pre-filled syringe of sterile 1.0% sodium hyaluronate solution used for the temporary replacement of synovial fluid in osteoarthritic joints. NeoVisc is packaged, sold and marketed as a three injection therapy that has been shown to provide symptomatic relief of the pain of osteoarthritis for an average of 6-12 months. The product is administered in three weekly injections directly into the affected joint.
About Stellar Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Stellar has developed and is marketing direct in Canada and in countries around the world through out-license agreements two products based on its core polysaccharide technology: NeoVisc®, for the treatment of osteoarthritis; and Uracyst® and the Uracyst® Test Kit, its patented technology for the diagnosis and treatment of interstitial cystitis (IC), an inflammatory disease of the urinary bladder wall. Stellar also has in-licensing agreements for NMP22® BladderChek®, a proteomics-based diagnostic test for the diagnosis and monitoring of bladder cancer.
This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties impacting the Company's business including increased competition; the ability of the Company to expand its operations, to attract and retain qualified professionals, technological obsolescence; general economic conditions; and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings.
Source: Stellar Pharmaceuticals
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