EuroPharma Today

NeurogesX Brings Astellas On Board To Launch Pain Patch in Europe

A deal with Astellas to market and distribute the neuropathic pain patch Qutenza in Europe will bolster NeurogesX's cash position, giving the company some breathing room to prepare for regulatory approval and a 2010 launch in the U.S. market.

UK's Chroma and GlaxoSmithKline Target Macrophages For Anti-Inflammatory Use

Chroma Therapeutics announced an option-based drug discovery and development deal on June 23 with GlaxoSmithKline, in conjunction with a £15 million ($24.5 million) Series D financing. Glaxo also participated in the fundraising, but its shareholding remains "well below 10 percent," according to Chroma chief executive Ian Nicholson.

European OTC Industry Prescribes Key Role For Pharmacists

Over-the-counter drug businesses in Europe require innovation in the form of new products and line extensions to drive growth--but this growth also could depend on OTC marketers' ability to educate pharmacists about their novel products.

That was the message from industry executives in early June at the annual meeting of the Association of the European Self-Medication Industry in Vienna, Austria, where several presenters discussed the changing role of pharmacists as learned intermediaries.

Tapping the Russia-CIS Opportunity: Local Manufacturing May Help Buoy Sales

Despite the recent collapse of Russia’s economy, Nycomed reckons it can capture €900 million ($1.25 billion) in sales from the region by 2013—in part through investing in local manufacturing.

Emerging Markets Drive Europe’s OTC Growth Despite Global Economic Slump

The developing world is playing a leading role in the global growth of OTC drug sales surpassing Rx growth for the first time. In Europe, emerging markets in the East are attractive expansion targets for drug firms in large part because they are key OTC growth drivers.

Generic Lovenox In EU Will Require Clinical Data, Shrinking Sandoz’s Opportunity

An EU guidance issued earlier this year requiring clinical trials for generic copies of low molecular weight heparins may just have shot the European market opportunity for Momenta and its partner Sandoz, according to Momenta's CFO Rick Shea.

At AESGP, Challenges Temper Optimism As Leaders View Future Of OTC

At the 45th annual meeting of the Association of the European Self-Medication Industry, executives reflected on the challenges of the European market even as OTC business units enjoy increased prominence within global and diversified organizations.

In Europe, Centralized OTC Switch Still Has A Few Bugs

The European Union's diversity means that when it comes to the new centralized procedure for Rx-to-OTC switches, there are several details yet to be ironed out, according to OTC industry executives.

For Germany's IQWiG, Pfizer Deceives while GSK Shines

Pfizer has apparently held back clinical trial data for its anti-depressant reboxetine (known in Germany as Edronax) from IQWiG, Germany's drug-benefit assessment agency, leading the agency to declare "no proof of benefit" in its preliminary report.

UK Biotech Proximagen Raises Record $80 Million ‘Asset Acquisition’ Fund

A ray of light for the beleaguered U.K. biotech sector at last? On June 5, Proximagen Neuroscience announced it raised $80 million from existing and new shareholders -- one of the largest fundraisings in the UK over the last decade -- and did so at no discount to its recent share price.