Sinphar Group (杏輝醫藥集團) yesterday said that stable earnings from its core businesses this year would help support its new drug development efforts as its upcoming oncology product reaches a critical stage.
A pancreatic cancer drug called SB05 PC, developed by Sinphar affiliate SynCore Biotechnology Co (杏國), is expected to begin global phase III studies in the first half of this year and preliminary data is expected early next year, Sinphar chairman Tim Lee (李志文) said at a news conference in Taipei.
Sinphar Pharmaceuticals Co Ltd (杏輝), the company’s main subsidiary, can generate ample profit to fund SynCore’s phase III trials, which is expected to cost about NT$1 billion (US$33.98 million), Lee said
In light of cooling investor interest in funding biotechnology, the company’s shareholders and board of director has approved plans to raise its stake in SynCore from 49 percent to more than 50 percent through stock purchases on the open market.
“This demonstrates our conviction,” Lee said.
Unlike some of its peers, the company is not concerned about revealing the drug’s early clinical study results next year, Lee said.
Depending on the results, the company would act definitively in either proceeding with the research or winding down development efforts, Lee said.
SB05 PC has shown promising results as a second-line treatment, SynCore general manager Su Muh-hwan (蘇慕寰) said, adding that there are no follow-up second-line treatments for pancreatic cancer patients who have completed a first-line regimen of Folfirinox, a cocktail of four drugs.
The phase III study would determine the effectiveness of SB05 PC in extending overall survival rates through a global study of 218 pancreatic cancer patients, Su said.
Oncology specialists have been leaning toward prescribing Folfirinox over other first-line options, and Lee said he is confident that SB05 PC could become the top choice for patients requiring second-line treatment.
However, as Folfirinox is not covered by the National Health Insurance system, SB05 PC could have a more limited addressable market in the nation, Su said.
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