Pharmaceutical News

‘Cancer is becoming big business in the Bay Area. But the price tag could loom large, too.

Nearly 400 clinical tests of cancer treatments were under way nationwide last year — more than triple the number in 1993. And a quarter of those studies involved Bay Area companies, ranging from Pharmacyclics of Sunnyvale to Palo-Alto based Telik to Kosan Biosciences in Hayward.

The trend is understandable. Genentech, the Bay Area’s biggest biotech player, has built its recent success largely on blockbuster cancer drugs. By 2009, global sales of cancer drugs are expected to double to $55 billion, according to IMS Health, which tracks the pharmaceutical industry.’

Read more at Global sales of cancer drugs are expected to double

‘The chief executive officer of Schering-Plough Corp. on Monday said he is interested in pursuing drugs that boost “good” HDL cholesterol and is hopeful the company’s experimental hepatitis C drug will eclipse current treatments in safety and effectiveness.

“Now that Schering-Plough has become strong in cardiovascular medicine, we are looking at the HDL area and think it is a very good area to be in,” Fred Hassan said in an interview.’

Read more at Schering-Plough CEO mulls HDL-raising drugs

‘BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. said Monday that European regulators approved its drug Naglazyme.

The drug is a treatment for the genetic disease MPS VI, known as Maroteaux-Lamy syndrome.’

Read more at BioMarin gets European drug OK

‘President Bush in his State of the Union address on Tuesday plans to announce proposals that provide consumers with “more control over — and responsibility for — their medical spending” to help reduce health care costs, the Wall Street Journal reports. The proposals likely will focus on the expansion of health savings accounts, which are available with some high-deductible health plans. In addition, the proposals likely will include improved availability of health care price information and expanded use of information technology (Lueck, Wall Street Journal, 1/29). Bush also plans to propose additional tax breaks for individuals who purchase their own health insurance, similar to the tax breaks that employers receive when they provide health coverage for employees. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, “Bush sees this as a fairness issue” because the “working poor and uninsured often must pay out of pocket for insurance and get little tax relief” (Hall/Pugh, Philadelphia Inquirer, 1/30). Bush also plans to propose to allow individuals to retain their health coverage when they change jobs without additional costs (Washington Post, 1/29). In addition, Bush likely will announce proposals that have previously failed in Congress, such as a plan to allow small businesses to form association health plans across state lines and a plan to cap damages in medical malpractice lawsuits (Philadelphia Inquirer, 1/30).’

Read more at BUSH: To Propose Expansion of HSAs in State of the Union Address

‘Merck & Co., the third-biggest U.S. pharmaceutical company, won a lawsuit over its Vioxx painkiller, after a state judge in New Jersey said a Texas man failed to prove the drug caused his stomach pain and internal bleeding.

Superior Court Judge Carol Higbee in Atlantic City granted a motion for summary judgment to Merck, saying the plaintiff, Edgar Lee Boyd, was unable to show he was hurt by Vioxx or by the company’s alleged failure to warn of its side effects.’

Read more at Merck Wins Lawsuit Over Vioxx Painkiller Brought by Texas Man

‘Choline salt specialist Algry Quimica has indicated that demand for its choline derivatives is continuing to rise thanks to growing awareness of their uses in nutraceuticals.

The private Spanish company has said it expects its sales of pharma grade choline salts to increase by between eight and 10 per cent in the first quarter of 2006, compared with the same period last year.

Its portfolio includes pharmaceutical-grade choline chloride (vitamin B4) and choline bitartrate, both of which are used in nutraceuticals, and several new products are in the pipeline for later in the year. Over the next two years it is also planning investment in its Huelva manufacturing facility.’

Read more at Nutraceuticals behind choline demand, says Spanish producer

‘A British woman is so desperate to be given access to the breast cancer drug Herceptin that she is prepared to protest at the government’s Welsh assembly in the Welsh capital Cardiff.

Jayne Sullivan, a 45-year-old mother says she means to maintain her protest until what she describes as the Herceptin “postcode lottery” for women is over.

Sullivan plans to begin her Cardiff Bay demonstration on Wednesday, the day after she learns whether her oncologist will apply for the drug to treat her.’

Read more at Postcode decides whether women receive breast cancer drug Herceptin

‘MAP Pharmaceuticals Inc., a leading developer of novel inhaled drug therapies, today announced the closing of a $25.25 million Series C preferred stock financing with several top-tier biotechnology investors. Proceeds from this financing will be used primarily to advance the Phase II clinical development of the company’s two lead drug candidates for the treatment of asthma and migraine.

The financing was led by Brookside Capital, an affiliate of Bain Capital. All of MAP Pharmaceuticals previous investors including the Perseus-Soros Biopharmaceutical Fund (PSBF); Pequot Ventures, the private equity arm of Pequot Capital Management, Inc.; Bay City Capital and Skyline Ventures were significant investors in the round. Alexandria Real Estate Equities also participated. With the closing of this financing, Matt McPherron of Brookside Capital will join MAP’s Board of Directors.’

Read more at MAP PHARMACEUTICALS CLOSES $25.25 MILLION SERIES C FINANCING

‘Funds from a settlement with a drug company will help an Arkansas mental health organization expand its assistance for children,

Arkansas Attorney General Mike Beebe says the Arkansas chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness will be awarded $14,516 from a 2003 settlement between the state and Bristol-Myers Squibb. ‘

Read more at Drug Company Settlement To Help Mental Illness Group

mQuest Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Frederick, MD, United States) and Samjin Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (Seoul, Korea) announced the formation of a strategic drug development alliance. According to the terms of the agreement, ImQuest Pharmaceuticals will provide complete preclinical and clinical drug development support for therapeutic small molecules discovered by Samjin Pharmaceutical Co.

Samjin Pharmaceutical Co., a publicly held company listed on the Korea Stock Exchange, is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in Korea with projected sales for 2005 estimated at USD 120 Million. ImQuest Pharmaceuticals, a privately held U.S. company, is the newest addition to the ImQuest family of companies.

“This relationship merges the significant individual strengths of both companies,” commented Jerry Cartright, ImQuest Pharmaceuticals’ CEO. “Samjin’s medicinal chemistry team will provide new entities that will be developed using ImQuest’s preclinical and clinical development expertise. Initially, our efforts will be focused on the rapid development of novel infectious disease and cancer agents.”