Friday June 15, 3:05 PM EDT
FRANKFURT, June 15 (Reuters) - German
pharmaceuticals group Schering AG (SCHG)(SCHG) said on Friday it had obtained
exclusive rights to take part in the development of a new intravaginal
ring to treat incontinence in women.
Schering also raised its annual peak
sales forecast for oral contraceptive Yasmin by 50 percent to 300 million
euros ($259.7 million), another effort by the Berlin-based group to boost
its fertility control and hormone therapy division.
The vaginal ring, releasing the drug
oxybutynin, would be inserted once every 28 days by women suffering from
urge incontinence, a sudden strong need to urinate usually caused by bladder
contractions or nerve damage.
Such rings are soon to be offered
for hormone replacement by firms such as Northern Irish specialty drug
maker Galen Holdings Plc (GAL).
Schering, best known for its multiple
sclerosis treatments as well as contraceptive pills, said in a statement
the new ring was currently in Phase II development by U.S. firm Enhance
Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Phase II trials examine the efficacy
of a drug together with its safety and dosing. Phase III is the final stage
of testing before marketing approval.
RING PEAK SALES FORECAST 100 MLN
EUROS
Submission of the ring for registration
in the United States is planned for 2003. Schering spokesman Oliver Renner
said the product had annual peak sales potential of 100 million euros ($86.36
million).
Yasmin, however, is expected to be
a greater money spinner.
"We've changed our peak sales forecast.
We are really courageous and have gone up to 300 (million euros)," management
board member responsible for research and development Guenter Stock told
Reuters in an interview.
"We are quite confident with our
European introductions and in now going into the American market," he added.
The drug, which Schering started
selling in the United States this month, also helps women fight weight-gain,
acne and premenstrual syndrome (PMS).
Schering had previously forecast
annual peak sales of 200 million euros for Yasmin some three years after
its introduction.
Schering's stock, already up 32 percent
from March 13's year low of 49.03 euros, ended down 0.70 percent at 64.80
euros compared with a 0.13 percent fall by the pan-European DJ Stoxx health
index (SXDP). The DAX index dropped 1.92 percent.
Schering's top-selling drug last
year in its fertility control and hormone therapy division was Diane, an
anti-acne treatment with contraceptive benefits. It had sales of 200 million
euros.
The Berlin-based firm said it would
fund further development of the vaginal ring and collaborate in clinical
development.
Renner declined to discuss financial
details or a possible upfront payment by Schering, which he said would
provide milestone and royalty payments should the development succeed.
Some 70 million people suffer from
urge incontinence, he said.
Schering said the oral version of
oxybutynin was currently the "gold standard" in drug therapies for sufferers
of urge incontinence.
Drugs already exist for incontinence,
a market which grew by 30 percent last year in the United States, where
one in nearly five adults over 45 is affected.
Other types of incontinence include
stress incontinence, caused during exercise, and overflow incontinence,
a leaking full bladder caused by weak bladder muscles or a blocked urethra.
©2001 Reuters Limited
By Steven Silber