Allergan purchases new urology product from Taris Biomedical

Allergan has announced the acquisition of LiRIS, a promising new treatment for interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.

The company has closed a transaction to acquire worldwide rights to Taris Biomedical's lead programme, which is currently in phase II testing, for an initial upfront fee of $67.5 million (40.55 million pounds).

Allergan has also agreed to pay up to an aggregate of $295 million in development milestone payments and a further $225 million in commercial milestone payments to Taris.

David Pyott, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Allergan, said: "The acquisition of LiRIS is an important addition to our growing urology pipeline and, if approved, will provide a local treatment for interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome, which is a debilitating bladder condition."

This follows the firm's recent efforts to develop its product Botox as a second-line treatment for overactive bladder, creating significant benefits for patients affected by this chronic condition.

It was approved by the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency in this indication last year.