First ever Nano Technology based Cancer drug launched

Bangalore, Jul 18 (UNI) India's leading Biotech company Biocon Technologies today launched U.S Food and Drug Administration approved, Abraxane, a solvent free paclitaxel, a first of its kind Nano Technology drug for metastatic breast cancer, developed by U.S company Abraxis BioScience.

Announcing the launch, Biocon Chief Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar said that both Biocon and Abraxis have signed a licensing agreement for the commercialization of Abraxane in India.

She said that new drug which was introduced in the United States in 2005 was approved by the Drug Controller General of India in October 2007 on the basis of successful clinical trial data recognised by the U.S. FDA.

She said that Abraxane is now available in India as a single-use 100 mg vial and will be made available lower than the cost (above 60 per cent cheaper) compared to United States.

Stating that in every year more than one lakh women were diagnosed with breast cancer and mortality rate was about 45000, Ms Shaw said that the growth rate of this killer disease was about Eight per cent. The breast is the second most common site of cancer in women after cervix uteri.

With the launch of the new drug against the metastatic breast cancer the most potent and solvent-free paclitaxel, Abraxane is being made available to the Indian patients who were diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. In the clinical trial, the tumor response rate was nearly double for patients who received Abraxane comparedto those who received solvent-based paclitaxel.

Outlining the functioning of the new drug which was developed employing cutting-edge nano technology, Ms Shaw said that the potent anti cancer drug stops cancer cells from growing and dividing by interfering with certain cell structures and kills the cancer cells.

She said that Abraxane offers a different approach for treating metastatic breast cancer with paclitaxel by using an albumin formulation to deliver paclitaxel. The new drug which is solvent-free the risk of certain hypersensitivity related side effects, are leas, she added.

MORE UNI MV MSP SKB1932