● SK chemicals, Bial Sign Exclusive Agreement for Parkinson＇s Treatment
- Licensing agreement for Ongentys, a new treatment option for Parkinson＇s patients
- Outstanding efficacy compared to existing treatments Marketing authorization application with MFDS, launch by 2020
SK chemicals is set to provide treatment domestically for Parkinson＇s patients with motor fluctuations.
SK chemicals announced on the 5th that a licensing agreement had been signed to exclusively supply Parkinson＇s medicine Ongentys (brand name for opicapone), developed by Bial, the largest pharmaceutical company in Portugal, in the Korean market.
Ongentys is a drug that inhibits the degradation of levodopa, a drug that supplements dopamine which is insufficient in the brains of Parkinson＇s patients.
Levodopa, which Parkinson＇s patients need to take regularly, exhibits reduced drug efficacy and motor fluctuations (on-off cycle of motor function symptoms) before the next administered dose in long-term administration. Most Parkinson＇s patients are known to experience motor fluctuations as the disease progresses for a few years. Combination treatments such as Ongentys have been shown to improve symptoms by prolonging the effects of levodopa.
According to clinical results, Ongentys, which increases the rate of delivery to the brain by inhibiting levodopa degradation in peripheral nerves, offers significantly improved off-time (period when a patient has difficulty moving) in contrast to the existing treatment of entacapone. Although the proportion of patients who discontinued clinical trials for drug-related side-effects was similar to those taking entacapone, numbers for those affected by nausea and chromaturia (abnormal coloration of urine) were low.
Ongentys, first commercialized in Europe in 2016, is rapidly expanding its market share, exceeding 10% in Germany and Spain in less than one year since launch.
Bial has conducted Phase III clinical trials in 30 countries around the world, including those in Europe and Asia, and SK chemicals plans apply for marketing authorization with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety within H1 of this year with the goal of launching Ongentys in Korea by 2020.
"[Ongentys] will be a treatment alternative to improve motor fluctuation, a prevalent symptom in Parkinson＇s patients," said Kwang-hyeon Jeon of SK Pharma. "We will strengthen our portfolio of central nervous system-related treatments and contribute to the promotion of national health rights."
According to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service＇s data from 2016, about 96,500 people in Korea suffer from Parkinson＇s disease. The domestic antiparkinson medication market is estimated to be about \78 billion based on data provided by IMS Health.
#Photo : Kwang-hyeon Jeon of SK Pharma and Antonio Portela of Bial are signing a supply agreement for Parkinson＇s treatment Ongentys at SK chemicals＇ head office in Pangyo.