Published on July 5, 2012 at 10:28 AM
Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCMP) (SPI) and Abbott (NYSE:ABT)
today announced that Sucampo Pharma, Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of
SPI, has received approval from the Ministry of Health, Labor and
Welfare in Japan for AMITIZA® (lubiprostone), a prescription
medicine for the treatment of chronic constipation (excluding
constipation caused by organic diseases).
"We are very pleased to receive Japan's first-ever approval for a
prescription medicine for chronic constipation as it helps us achieve
our objective of bringing medicines with novel mechanisms of action to
patients with unmet medical needs on a global basis," said Ryuji Ueno,
M.D., Ph.D., Ph.D., Sucampo's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We
look forward to working with Abbott to meet the needs of these patients
in Japan."
In 2009, Sucampo and Abbott Japan Co. Ltd. entered into a license,
commercialization and supply agreement for AMITIZA in Japan.
Source: Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.