ACCESS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (OTCBB: ACCP), an emerging biopharmaceutical company, today announced that it had entered into an exclusive license agreement with Norgine B.V., a leading independent European specialty pharmaceutical company, for the commercialization of MuGard in Europe. Under the terms of the license agreement, Access will receive up to $10 million in milestone payments and an escalating double digit royalty on the net sales of the oral mucositis product, MuGard, in the licensed territories. Norgine will develop, manufacture, and commercialize MuGard in the European Union, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein. Norgine anticipates launching MuGard in 2015.
Commenting on the news, Jeffrey Davis, CEO of Access Pharmaceuticals, Inc stated, "Access is excited to announce this partnership with Norgine, a leading European specialty company, as it further validates our global MuGard commercial strategy." He added, "With product offerings in complementary therapeutic areas and an established presence in the cancer supportive care space, Norgine is an ideal partner for us and we believe this partnership will drive commercial adoption in Europe and facilitate access of a proven treatment option to help protect patients from oral mucositis, a debilitating side effect."
"This new partnership with Access Pharmaceuticals Inc. represents an excellent opportunity to ensure that cancer patients affected by oral mucositis can access MuGard, to help manage this condition for which there are limited effective treatment options," said Peter Stein, CEO of Norgine. He continued, "This collaboration is further evidence of Norgine's commitment to acquire specialty pharmaceutical products to strengthen its portfolio."
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