Thursday, February 16, 2017
Solasia Pharma K.K. and Lee’s Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited jointly announced today that Solasia and Lee’s Pharma have entered into an exclusive agreement for the commercialization and promotion of episil® in the People’s Republic of China (the “PRC”), Hong Kong and Macau, excluding Taiwan and the Retained Territory (defined hereafter). Solasia will retain rights to commercialize and promote episil® in three major cities (Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou; the “Retained Territory”) in the PRC.
Solasia has obtained an exclusive license to develop and commercialize episil® in Japan and the PRC from Camurus AB (“Camurus”) (STO: CAMX) in 2015. In 2016, Solasia filed for New Medical Device Application for episil® in Japan and the PRC.
episil® oral liquid represents a unique and innovative concept for local treatment of pain associated with oral mucositis (OM). Having been developed using the award-winning* Camurus proprietary technology FluidCrystal®, episil® is administered as lipid-based liquid that spreads on the intraoral mucosal surfaces and transforms to strongly bioadhesive film, which physically protects the sensitized and sore mucosa of the oral cavity. episil® has clinically demonstrated to rapidly (within minutes) and effectively reduce oral pain for up to 8 hours. episil® oral liquid is the only product for OM that is supplied as a ready-to-use, pocket-sized device helping patients maintain their quality of life while undergoing cancer therapy. episil® was first launched in Europe in 2009 and is today commercially available in a number of countries, including the U.S. where it was launched by key global pharmaceutical players. episil® oral liquid is a medical device class 1 in Europe and a 510(k) registered medical device in the U.S.
*FluidCrystal® was awarded the “Best innovation in formulation” prize at the CPhI Worldwide in 2013.
“In addition to the existing partnership we already have with Lee’s Pharma, we are extremely pleased to further strengthening our partnership with the addition of episil®. As we prepare for commercialization in the PRC, we believe our extensive partnership would enable us to cover a large part of mainland China to support cancer patients suffering from OM,” said Mr. Yoshihiro Arai, President & Representative Director. “Oral mucositis is a difficult symptom to control for patients receiving chemotherapy and radiotherapy. episil® with its uniqueness of ready-to-use, pocket sized device, we hope to change the treatment landscape in the field of OM.”
“We respect and value Solasia’s commitment to oncology and this collaboration will further contribute to enhance Lee’s Pharma’s capabilities in this therapeutic area,” said Dr. Li Xiaoyi, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Lee's Pharma. “Lee’s Pharma will work robustly with Solasia in close cooperation to accelerate commercialization of episil® and bring a new therapeutic option to cancer patients in the PRC.”
