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Novelos and Lee's Sign License Agreement for Cancer and Hepatitis Compounds

Posted on: Wednesday, 19 December 2007, 03:00 CST

Novelos Therapeutics has signed an exclusive license agreement with Lee's Pharmaceutical to develop and commercialize in China, including Hong Kong and Macau, as well as in Taiwan, two of Novelos's compounds, NOV-002 for cancer and NOV-205 for hepatitis.

NOV-002 is in pivotal Phase III trial for non-small cell lung cancer under a special protocol assessment and fast track.

Lee's Pharmaceutical, which is 30% owned by Sigma-Tau Group through Defiante Farmaceutica, will be responsible for the cost of all clinical development, regulatory submissions and commercialization of NOV-002 and NOV-205 in China. In addition to upfront and milestone payments, Novelos will receive 20% to 25% royalties from Lee's Pharmaceutical on net sales of NOV-002 and 12% to 15% royalties on net sales of NOV-205.

Harry Palmin, president and CEO of Novelos, said: "I am very pleased to be collaborating with Lee's Pharmaceutical, a vibrant public company that has a proven track record of developmental and commercialization expertise in China. The significant royalties allow Novelos greater participation in China's rapidly growing marketplace, particularly in critical disease areas of cancer and hepatitis. This deal also marks the commencement of Novelos's ex-US partnering initiative."

Benjamin Li, CEO of Lee's Pharmaceutical, said: "We are excited about the opportunity to work with Novelos on its two exciting compounds NOV-002 and NOV-205. With over 1.7 million people being diagnosed with cancer each year and over 120 million people being infected with hepatitis B virus, both cancer and hepatitis B are major health problems facing China today. Better treatment options are badly needed in those areas and the market potential for innovative and effective treatment will be enormous."

Source: Datamonitor

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