Navidea Biopharmaceuticals Inc. has signed a
European distributor for its cancer diagnostic aid Lymphoseek that comes
with a $2 million up-front payment, but sales on the continent aren't
expected to start until early next year.
Dublin-based
Navidea entered an exclusive sublicense with SpePharm
AG, a specialty pharmaceutical arm of Dutch distributor Norgine BV. "Norgine's commercial, medical and development
expertise, combined with its well-established infrastructure and strong
presence in the European marketplace, make it an ideal commercialization
partner," said a statement from Navidea CEO Rick Gonzalez. Unlike
in the U.S., radioactive drugs in Europe are sold directly to
health-care sites instead of distributed through specialty nuclear
pharmacies. Gonzalez said Norgine is the best choice for selling
directly to surgical oncologists who would order the drug. That's a strategy that it's only now adopting after more than a year of U.S. sales focused on nuclear medicine physicians.
Lymphoseek was approved by EU regulators in November
for use in finding the "sentinel" lymph nodes that drain fluid from
tumor sites, to test them for the spread of cancer. It's approved for
use in breast cancer, melanoma and certain cancers of the head and neck.
"This
truly innovative medicine and first of its type will aid in the
accurate staging of cancers, therefore enabling health-care
professionals and patients to choose the best course of treatment," said
a statement on Lymphoseek from Norgine CEO Peter Stein.
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