Mr. David Dodd reports
AETERNA ZENTARIS AND ARMUNE BIOSCIENCE FINALIZE CO-MARKETING AGREEMENT FOR APIFINYATRADEMARK PROSTATE CANCER BLOOD TEST
Aeterna Zentaris Inc. has finalized a co-marketing agreement with Armune
BioScience Inc. that will allow the company to promote
Armune's Apifiny, the only cancer specific, non-PSA blood
test for the detection of prostate cancer.
Under the co-marketing agreement, the company will promote Apifiny to
designated medical professionals in its U.S. territories and will
receive a commission for each test performed resulting from its targeted
promotion. Jude Dinges, senior vice-president and chief commercial
officer of Aeterna Zentaris, commented on the agreement: "Apifiny
represents an important addition to clinical information pertaining to
the detection of prostate cancer. It is a simple, non-PSA-based measure
for patients and their clinicians to aid in assessment of prostate
cancer risk. Importantly, this product enhances our focus on the
oncology marketplace in general and on the diagnosis, monitoring and
treatment of prostate cancer in particular. It was recently reported
that our Zoptrex product has demonstrated potential as a treatment for
certain types of prostate cancer in an investigator-sponsored phase II
trial and, therefore, we have a keen interest in products that relate to
the condition."
Discussing the potential for a broader collaboration between the company
and Armune, Richard Sachse, MD, PhD, senior vice-president and chief
scientific officer of the company, commented, "It will be an exciting
opportunity to qualify Apifiny as a companion diagnostic for therapeutic
decision-making and for disease-monitoring within our ongoing Zoptrex
development program or potential successor programs, if we decide to go
forward in prostate cancer or any other cancer suitable for Armune's
compelling technology platform."
David A. Dodd, chairman, president and chief executive officer of the
company, commented on the opportunity, stating: "Promoting Apifiny will
give our sales force experience in the oncology market, which will serve
us well as we move toward the commercialization of Zoptrex, if it is
approved by the FDA. We are also looking forward to developing a much
more in-depth relationship with Armune in connection with the evaluation
of Zoptrex for prostate cancer and perhaps other indications."
"We are very excited to begin our partnership with Aeterna Zentaris
through this initial agreement," commented David A. Esposito, president
and chief executive officer of Armune BioScience. "The experience and
expertise of the commercial and research teams at Aeterna Zentaris will
be extremely helpful to Armune as we accelerate the growth of Apifiny
and develop our autoantibody technology across major areas of unmet need
in cancer. In less than eight months on the market, Apifiny has been
ordered over 2,500 times as clinicians move beyond PSA-based testing to
assess prostate cancer risk. Aeterna Zentaris will help us achieve the
full potential of this opportunity."
About prostate cancer
Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in
American men. The American Cancer Society predicted that 220,800 new
cases of prostate cancer in the United States would occur in 2015, that
there would be 27,540 prostate cancer deaths during the year and that
one man in seven would be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his
lifetime. Approximately 60 per cent of prostate cancer is diagnosed in men aged
65 or older, and it is rare before age 40. Prostate cancer is the second
leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer.
Prostate cancer can be a serious disease, but most men diagnosed with
prostate cancer do not die from it. In fact, more than 2.9 million men
in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at
some point are still alive today.
About Apifiny
Apifiny is the only cancer-specific, non-PSA blood test that may aid
clinicians in the detection of prostate cancer. Apifiny technology
measures the body's immune response to cancer and is based on the
measurement of eight prostate-cancer-specific autoantibodies in human
serum. These autoantibodies are produced and amplified by the immune
system in response to the presence of prostate cancer cells. The
autoantibodies are stable and, because of their amplification, are
likely to be abundant and easy to detect, especially with small tumours
characteristic of early stage cancers. The autoantibody markers span a
range of biological functions integral to prostate-cancer progression.
Cell cycle, structure, and cellular signalling pathways are all
represented. The use of Apifiny results supplement other information
about a patient's risk of prostate cancer and may therefore aid
clinicians in the detection of prostate cancer.
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