ProStrakan ‘to launch transdermal patch’

ProStrakan has announced plans to launch Sancso, its transdermal patch for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, before the end of the year.

Sancuso is the first licensed transdermal 5ht3 receptor agonist and offers patients a non-oral and non-invasive treatment option.

The therapy was developed in-house by the company with a five year period from inception to launch.

ProStrakan said the market for this product is worth at least $1.3 billion (718 million pounds) in the US alone.

It added that the drug will be marketed in this region by an exclusive sales force being established in conjunction with Quintiles partnering group NovaQuest.

Dr Wilson Totten, chief executive officer of ProStrakan, said: “Significant challenges persist in the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, which jeopardises the health of many chemotherapy patients and can deter them from continuing their cancer treatment.”

He added the sales potential of Sancuso and Abstral in Europe are key events for the company which will allow it to become profitable in the next two years.

In July 2008, ProStrakan said regulators had decided to delay the action date for Sancuso as a result of administrative, rather than technical, reasons.