Alcon acquires right to market DUREZOL ophthalmic corticosteroid in U.S.

Alcon (NYSE:ACL), the world's leader in eye care, announced today that it received regulatory approval and finalized the acquisition of the rights in the United States for DUREZOL™ emulsion and the global rights, excluding Latin America, for ZYCLORIN™ from Sirion Therapeutics, Inc. Alcon will immediately assume all marketing, promotion and sales of DUREZOL™. Management said that it is continuing to evaluate options to acquire ZIRGAN™, an antiviral recently approved by the FDA for the treatment of acute herpetic keratitis (corneal ulcers).

“Durezol's unique capability to effectively and quickly treat both inflammation and pain following ocular surgery makes it a great fit for Alcon's leading product portfolio.”

DUREZOL™ emulsion is a topical ophthalmic corticosteroid used to treat postoperative inflammation and pain associated with ocular surgery and received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2008. Currently under clinical investigation to treat dry eye and other ocular surface diseases, ZYCLORIN™ is a topical ophthalmic immunomodulator and immunosuppressive agent.

"This acquisition reinforces our ability to drive growth in the near-term with the acquisition of DUREZOL™ and add products to our long-term research pipeline with ZYCLORIN™," said Stuart Raetzman, vice president, Global Marketing and area president for the United States. "Durezol's unique capability to effectively and quickly treat both inflammation and pain following ocular surgery makes it a great fit for Alcon's leading product portfolio."