Specialized Therapeutics, a subsidiary of Melbourne-based Specialised Therapeutics Australia, has announced a new sublicense agreement under which global pharmaceutical company Mundipharma will assume all commercialisation responsibilities for the anti-emetic products ALOXI (palonosetron hydrochloride) and AKYNZEO (netupitant and palonesetron).
ALOXI is indicated for the prevention of acute nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy and has been commercially available in Australia since 2010 under license from Helsinn Healthcare SA, a Swiss pharmaceutical company which has consented to the sublicense agreement.
AKYNZEO is the first fixed combination oral agent targeting two critical signalling pathways associated with chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) by combining netupitant, an NK1 receptor antagonist, and palonosetron, a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, in a single capsule.
AKYNZEO is also supplied by Helsinn, and was approved by the TGA in May 2015. The PBAC recommended its reimbursement via the PBS in November last year, a process the company said is now "nearing completion".
Under the terms of the arrangement, Specialized Therapeutics grants Mundipharma exclusive marketing, promotion, distribution and sales rights for the products in Australia and New Zealand.
Specialised Therapeutics Australia has grown rapidly in recent years on the back of a growing portfolio, which is headlined by the PBS-listed ABRAXANE (nab-paclitaxel) for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.