ProStrakan begins European roll-out for granisetron patch
This article was originally published in Scrip
ProStrakan, the UK-based subsidiary of Kyowa Hakko Kirin, has finally started the EU roll-out of its transdermal granisetron patch, Sancuso, for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.
Sancuso is the first and only patch of the 5-hydroxytryptamine3 (5-HT3) receptor antagonist to be licensed for patients with swallowing difficulties. Generic granisetron is marketed by Roche as Kytril.
Sancuso was approved in the EU last year (scripintelligence.com, 26 April 2012) "but a multi-territory approval requires a lot of launch preparation," a spokesperson told Scrip.
Sancuso is being marketed by ProStrakan's own sales teams in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, with additional EU countries planned for 2014. It costs £56 in the UK for a single patch which can be worn for up to a week.
Sancuso was first launched in the US in 2008 and has been marketed there by ProStrakan since then.
Kyowa acquired ProStrakan in a deal worth £292 million in 2011 (scripintelligence.com, 21 February 2011). US sales figures for Sancuso have not been disclosed.
In March this year, US firm AP Pharma received a complete response letter from the US FDA for APF530 – a formulation of granisetron using the company's Biochronomer drug delivery system, which allows therapeutic drug levels to be maintained for five days with a single subcutaneous injection.
"In order to allow us time to carefully address the issues raised in the CRL, we are now projecting product launch for the first half of 2014, versus our prior guidance of the second half of 2013," said AP Pharma in March.