Pharming And Transmedic Announce Distribution Agreement For Ruconest
LEIDEN, The Netherlands, February 14, 2012. Biotech company Pharming Group NV (“Pharming” or “the Company”) (NYSE Euronext: PHARM) announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Transmedic Pte Ltd. (Transmedic), a privately owned Singapore based specialty healthcare company, for the commercialization of RUCONEST® (recombinant human C1 inhibitor) for the treatment of acute attacks of Hereditary Angioedema (HAE) in parts of South- East Asia. The South- East Asian territories covered under this agreement include Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
Under the agreement, Transmedic will drive the respective regulatory approvals and purchase its commercial supplies of RUCONEST from Pharming at a fixed transfer price.
Sijmen de Vries, CEO of Pharming, commented: "We are plea sed to have taken another step towards making RUCONEST, an innovative, highly effective and safe replacement therapy, available to HAE patients globally. In Transmedic we have found an experienced commercialization partner dedicated to bringing innovative specialty medicines to this region. Transmedic’s proven ability to cater for specialty medical care in hospitals provides an excellent platform from which RUCONEST can be made available to doctors and HAE patients in these countries.”
Teo Kee Meng, Managing Director of Transmedic, said: “Being able to add RUCONEST to our portfolio is another example of our continuous drive to bring the most innovative products in specialty medicine, to fulfill the unmet medical needs for patients and doctors, into our rapidly developing region; we are very excited about the potential of RUCONEST in HAE and the future indications that RUCONEST may be developed for.”
About RUCONEST (RHUC IN in non-European territories) and Hereditary Angioedema
RUCONEST® (INN conestat alfa) is a recombinant version of the human protein C1 inhibitor (C1INH). RUCONEST is produced through Pharming’s proprietary technology in milk of transgenic rabbits and in Europe is approved under the name RUCONEST for treatment of acute angioedema attacks in patients with HAE. RHUCIN® is an investigational drug in the U.S. and has been granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of acute attacks of HAE, a genetic disorder in which the patient is deficient in or lacks a functional plasma protein C1 inhibitor, resulting in unpredictable and debilitating episodes of intense swelling of the extremities, face, trunk, genitals, abdomen and upper airway. The frequency and severity of HAE attacks vary and are most serious when they involve laryngeal edema, which can close the upper airway and cause death by asphyxiation. According to the U.S. Hereditary Angioedema A ssociation, epidemiological estimates for HAE range from one in 10,000 to one in 50,000 individuals.
About Pharming Group NV
Pharming Group NV is developing innovative products for the treatment of unmet medical needs. RUCONEST® (RHUCIN® in non-European territories) is a recombinant human C1 inhibitor approved for the treatment of angioedema attacks in patients with HAE in all 27 EU countries plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, and is distributed in the EU by Swedish Orphan Biovitrum (OMX: SOBI). RHUCIN® is partnered with Santarus, Inc (NASDAQ: SNTS) in North America where the drug is undergoing Phase III clinical development. The product is also being evaluated for follow-on indications in the areas of transplantation and reperfusion injury. The advanced technologies of the Company include innovative and validated platforms for the production of protein therapeutics, technology and processes for the purification and fo rmulation of these products. Recently a new project, using the validated transgenic rabbit platform, aimed at the development of recombinant Factor VIII for the treatment of Haemophilia A was initiated was initiated by partner, Renova Life, Inc. Additional information is available on the Pharming website, www.pharming.com.
About Transmedic Pte Ltd
Transmedic Pte Ltd was established in 1980 and has close to 30 years of valuable industry experience, in-depth knowledge & skills in the field of cutting-edge medical technologies and healthcare treatment.
Today, Transmedic is a leading medical specialty partner of world-class healthcare institutions and professionals in Southeast Asia. With its headquarters in Singapore, branch offices in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong & Philippines, and sub-distributors in Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei & Pakistan, Transmedic has a comprehensive regional network for the most strategic approach to effectively distributing specialty medical devices and specialty medicine. For more information, please visit http://www.transmedic.com.sg.
This press release contains forward looking statements that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward looking statements.
SOURCE: Pharming Group NV
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