June 2, 2021 | Berlin
Eckert & Ziegler and Telix Pharmaceuticals Enter Co-Promotion Agreement for Prostate Cancer Diagnostic in the United States
Eckert & Ziegler and Telix Pharmaceuticals (Telix) will cooperate closely in the commercialization of GalliaPharm® (68Ge/68Ga Generator) and investigational product Illuccix® (Kit for the preparation of Ga-68 PSMA-11 injection) in the United States. An agreement to this effect has now been signed by the two companies. Illuccix® is a preparation for imaging prostate cancer by positron emission tomography (PET) and is currently under review for regulatory approval in the United States and multiple markets worldwide.
Eckert & Ziegler and Telix will expand their existing collaboration to further develop access to Ga-68 supply in the United States. The parties will both promote the combination of GalliaPharm® and Illuccix® to national radiopharmacy networks, commercial and hospital-based nuclear pharmacies, and other target institutions.
“After previously being granted distribution rights for Germany, our home market, the latest collaboration marks another important milestone for our 68Ga generator GalliaPharm® and our nuclear medicine activities”, explained Dr Harald Hasselmann, Eckert & Ziegler Executive Director and responsible for the Medical segment. “We are pleased to have Telix as a partner and to be able to jointly provide leading edge diagnostic products to prostate cancer patients in the USA.”
“This important cooperation between EZAG and Telix sales teams is highly complementary to our efforts in rolling out 68Ga-PSMA imaging across the US. Subject to FDA approval, we will together raise awareness of this state-of-the-art imaging modality and facilitate coast-to-coast access for US men living with prostate cancer.”, added Telix Americas President Dr Bernard Lambert.
Following regulatory approval, Illuccix® will be offered as a cold kit preparation for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. For this purpose, Illuccix® enables PSMA-11 to be radio-labelled with the radionuclide 68Ga directly before injection by medical personnel. After preparing the radiopharmaceutical and injecting it into the patient, sites exhibiting prostate cancer are localized and imaged via the presence of the prostate-specific membrane antigen.[1],[2]
Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men in the United States, with approximately 210,000 cases in 2020, a significantly higher incidence than either lung cancer (116,000 new cases) or bowel cancer (82,000 new cases).[3] Prostate cancer was also the second most common cause of cancer death in men, with over 32,000 men dying from the disease in the United States in 2020. More than 812,000 American men were estimated to be living with prostate cancer in 2020.
[1] Fendler W et al. JAMA Oncol. 2019; 5(6): 856-863.
[2] Hofman M et al. The Lancet. 2020; 395: 1208-1216.
[3] IARC Global Cancer Observatory, 2020.