FOSTER CITY, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 08/28/14 --
SciClone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCLN), and its partner BTG plc (LSE: BTG), today announced that the China Food and Drug Administration has approved the registration of DC Bead® for the embolization of malignant hypervascularized tumors.
BTG and SciClone previously entered into an agreement granting SciClone exclusive licensing and distribution rights to DC Bead® in China. Under the agreement, SciClone will purchase product from BTG at a specified price for sale in China. Commercial launch plans are now underway.
Friedhelm Blobel,
SciClone Chief Executive Officer commented: "Together with our partner
BTG, we will now focus our efforts on preparing for the introduction of
the product in the Chinese market. Oncology is a core business focus for
SciClone, and our sales team and academic marketing liaisons have
established high quality relationships with the medical professionals
and institutions that specialize in cancer treatment. We believe DC Bead® has the potential to be a valuable addition to SciClone's oncology product portfolio."
Louise Makin, Chief Executive Officer at BTG, said: "Approximately half of the world's liver cancer patients are in China
and there is a great interest among Chinese physicians to offer new,
differentiated treatment options. Today's news marks an important step
toward bringing our first interventional oncology product, DC Bead®, to the Chinese market where we can help address this need."
DC Bead® is a novel treatment for liver cancer which is currently approved in 40 countries worldwide, including Europe. DC Bead® is an embolic bead delivered through a minimally invasive, non-surgical procedure to block the blood flow to tumors.
DC Bead® is registered in China
for the embolization of malignant hypervascularized tumors such as
hepatocellular carcinoma ("HCC"), the most common form of primary liver
cancer. The majority of people with HCC have cirrhosis, usually from
chronic hepatitis B or hepatitis C infection, or chronic alcoholism.
Because of the country's high incidence of hepatitis, China
accounts for approximately one-half of the world's liver cancer cases.
More than 350,000 people dying from primary liver cancer in China annually1.
DC Bead® and/or all indications may not be available in all territories. DC Bead® is not currently cleared by the FDA for sale or distribution in the USA.
About BTG
BTG is an international specialist healthcare company that
is developing and commercializing products targeting acute care, cancer
and vascular diseases. The company has diversified revenues from sales
of its own marketed products and from royalties on partnered products,
and is seeking to acquire new programmes and products to develop and
market to specialist physicians. For further information about BTG
please visit our website at www.btgplc.com.
About SciClone
SciClone Pharmaceuticals is a revenue-generating, specialty pharmaceutical company with a substantial commercial business in China
and a product portfolio spanning major therapeutic markets including
oncology, infectious diseases and cardiovascular disorders. SciClone's
proprietary lead product, ZADAXIN® (thymalfasin), is approved in over 30
countries and may be used for the treatment of hepatitis B (HBV),
hepatitis C (HCV), and certain cancers, and as a vaccine adjuvant,
according to the local regulatory approvals. Through its promotion
business with pharmaceutical partners, SciClone markets multiple branded
products in China
which are therapeutically differentiated. The Company has successfully
in-licensed
products with the potential to become future market leaders and to drive
the Company's long-term growth. SciClone is a publicly-held corporation
based in Foster City, California, and trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol SCLN. For additional information, please visit www.sciclone.com.
1http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21144900
Read complete press release here: Labels: China, DC Bead, Liver cancer treatment