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AstraZeneca sells US/Canada rights for Seroquel for $41 million to “focus on main therapy areas”

pharmafile | December 3, 2019 | News story | Manufacturing and Production, Sales and Marketing AstraZeneca, pharma 

AstraZeneca has announced its intention to jettison the rights to two non-core drugs in the US and Canada in order to “support the company’s focus on main therapy areas”.

The two products in question are Seroquel (quetiapine fumarate immediate release) and Seroquel XR (quetiapine fumarate extended release), atypical anti-psychotic medicines which are used in the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

AZ has agreed to sell these properties to German pharma firm Cheplapharm Arzneimittel for a total valuation of $41 million, comprising a $35 million upfront payment and milestone payments of $6 million. In the US and Canada in 2018 Seroquel made $36 million for the company, while Seroquel XR generated $79 million in revenue.

“This divestment supports our strategy of reducing the number of mature medicines to enable reinvestment in our main therapy areas,” explained Ruud Dobber, Executive Vice President, BioPharmaceuticals Business Unit at AZ. “Cheplapharm recently agreed to acquire the commercial rights to Seroquel and Seroquel XR in most European markets and Russia from AstraZeneca and this new agreement will help ensure continued patient access to this important established medicine in North America as well.”

AZ confirmed that it would continue to manufacture and supply these drugs to Cheplapharm for the duration of a transition period.

Matt Fellows

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