ProStrakan ‘on target’ to break-even this year
pharmafile | March 19, 2009 | News story | Sales and Marketing | ProStrakan
ProStrakan says it will move into the black later this year, after sales rose by a third and its operating loss was cut by £500,000 in 2008.
The Scottish pharma company’s product sales were up 32% to £53.8 million (2007: £40.9m) and total revenue rose 23% to £56.1m (2007: £45.6m).
The company was still running at a loss last year, but this was cut slightly from £17.7m in 2007 to £17.2m.
Chief executive Dr Wilson Totten said: “2008 proved to be an excellent year for ProStrakan. The strong sales growth from our EU business has allowed us to report revenues in line with consensus forecasts and we finished the year with a very strong cash position, maintaining our target of reaching break-even later in 2009 without the need for further fundraising.
The company said the approvals last year of Sancuso in the US and another cancer treatment Abstral in North America last year and France and Spain this month will drive sales growth.
Branded as Rapinyl in the US, Abstral is used to manage cancer pain in patients who are already receiving opioid analgesics.
Further EU launches are planned for Abstral this year, while ProStrakan says it will be focusing in the US on growing Sancuso, prescriptions for which are around 500 patches per week.
“These products, although early in their launch cycle, are being well received by prescribers, and we are confident that they will grow to be very significant contributors to our future growth,” Totten said.
The company also plans to file three NDAs in the next few months for Fortigel, Cellegesic and Rapinyl.
US promotion deal
The release of ProStrakan’s 2008 figures coincided with the announcement that it has signed a US co-promotion deal with EKR Therapeutics for the cancer pain product Gelclair.
The oral gel is indicated for the management of pain associated with oral mucositis (OM), a side effect of chemotherapy or radiation to the head and neck.
The three-year, renewable agreement will see ProStrakan receiving undisclosed payments based on the volume of packs sold from May.
OM occurs in 40% of patients receiving standard dose chemotherapy and 80% in patients receiving high dose therapy.
Its effects include difficulty in eating, drinking, swallowing and speaking as well as severe pain.
EKR obtained North American rights to Gelclair in 2006 from Swiss firm Helsinn Healthcare. The product received FDA approval in 2001.
Gelclair comes as a dilutable gel in 15ml sachets, and works by forming a barrier to protect the nerve endings that cause pain.
ProStrakan plans to market this alongside another cancer-related treatment, Sancuso, a transdermal patch to prevent chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, which received FDA approval last September.
Gelclair will be offered as a second detail to US oncologists and oncology nurses across the US by sales people who are already promoting Sancuso.
ProStrakan’s Wilson Totten said the two products were “highly complementary”.
“The addition of Gelclair to our US product range presents ProStrakan with an excellent opportunity to capitalise on the access that Sancuso has created for our team to oncologists and oncology nurses across the US,” he added.
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