Country for PR: United Kingdom
Contributor: PR Newswire Europe
Friday, July 23 2021 - 18:00
AsiaNet
Norgine B.V. and US WorldMeds enter into exclusive licensing agreement to commercialise DFMO (eflornithine) in Europe, Commonwealth of Independent States, Australia and New Zealand
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands and LOUISVILLE, Ky., July 23, 2021 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/--

NORGINE B.V. (Norgine) a leading European specialist pharmaceutical company and 
US WorldMeds (USWM), a Kentucky-based specialty pharmaceutical company, today 
announced an exclusive licensing agreement by which Norgine will register and 
commercialise difluoromethylornithine, DFMO (eflornithine) in Europe, 
Commonwealth of Independent States, Australia and New Zealand.

DFMO is a repurposed molecule investigated for use as an extended maintenance 
treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma (HRNB) in paediatric patients with no 
active disease (NAD) / no evidence of disease (NED) after first line 
multiagent, multimodality therapy.[1]HRNB, a rare cancer that forms from 
immature nerve cells, most often occurs in young children. It accounts for 15% 
of all paediatric cancer deaths due to the fact that nearly half of all 
patients who reach remission will relapse.[2] 

Under the terms of the license agreement, Norgine will be responsible for the 
regulatory approval of DFMO and any subsequent clinical trials required for 
approval in the relevant territories. Norgine will hold marketing 
authorisations in the licensed territories.

Christopher Bath, Chief Operating Officer of Norgine said, "We are proud to be 
able to support the development of this important treatment for children 
subject to successful completion of its research programme and subsequent 
regulatory approval. High-risk neuroblastoma has a lower survival rate than 
other neuroblastomas and there is an urgent need to develop additional 
treatment options to prolong survival in this group of patients."

Peter Stein, Chief Executive Officer of Norgine also commented, "This agreement 
is another successful milestone in our company's growing pipeline of 
potentially transformative treatments that, subject to its successful 
development, will enable us to help more patients in the future." 

Lee Warren, Chief Operating Officer of USWM stated, "We are passionate about 
bringing meaningful therapies to the patients that need them, and this 
agreement is an important step in fulfilling that mission. Our partnership with 
Norgine will extend the reach of this promising therapeutic to children with 
high-risk neuroblastoma, a devastating disease that affects children 
everywhere, including in areas outside of the United States."

www.norgine.com 
Follow us @norgine

Notes to Editors:

About DFMO 

DFMO is a repurposed molecule investigated for use as an extended maintenance 
treatment for high-risk neuroblastoma (HRNB) in paediatric patients with no 
active disease (NAD) / no evidence of disease (NED) after first line 
multiagent, multimodality therapy.[1]

About Norgine 

Norgine is a leading European specialist pharmaceutical company that has been 
bringing transformative medicines to patients for over a century. Our 
commitment to transforming people's lives drives everything we do and our 
European experience, fully integrated infrastructure and exceptional 
partnership approach enables us to quickly apply creative solutions to bring 
life-changing medicines to patients that they may not otherwise be able to 
access. Norgine is proud to have helped 22 million patients around the world in 
2020 and generated €448 million in net product sales, a growth of 7% over 2019.

Norgine has a direct presence in 12 European countries, as well as Australia 
and New Zealand. We also have a strong global network of partnerships in 
non-Norgine markets. We are a flexible and fully integrated pharmaceutical 
business, with manufacturing (Hengoed, Wales and Dreux, France), third party 
supply networks and significant product development capabilities, in addition 
to our sales and marketing infrastructure. This enables us to acquire, develop 
and commercialise specialist and innovative products that make a real 
difference to the lives of patients around the world.

In 2012, Norgine established Norgine Ventures, a complementary business which 
supports innovative healthcare companies through the provision of debt-like 
financing in Europe and the US. For more information, please visit 
www.norgineventures.com

NORGINE and the sail logo are trademarks of the Norgine group of companies.

About US WorldMeds 

US WorldMeds (USWM) is a specialty pharmaceutical company whose treatment 
options are making a difference in the lives of the patients and communities it 
serves. USWM takes an agile and personal approach to pharmaceuticals – 
pioneering research and product development in therapeutic areas that 
desperately need new solutions. Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, USWM has 
global presence and more than 15 years of experience in the development, 
licensure, and commercialization of unique products.  

For more information about USWM, visit http://www.usworldmeds.com/. 
Follow us on Twitter [https://twitter.com/USWorldMeds?lang=en], LinkedIn 
[https://www.linkedin.com/company/usworldmeds/], and on Facebook 
[https://www.facebook.com/USWorldMeds/]. 

References

[1] ClinicalTrials.gov Preventative Trial of Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) in 
High Risk Patients With Neuroblastoma That is in Remission, Identifier: 
NCT02395666 https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02395666 
[2] Giselle L. et al. Maintenance DFMO Increases Survival in High Risk 
Neuroblastoma. Scientific Reports, 2018; 8 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-32659-w 
[http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-32659-w]

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Source: Norgine and US WorldMeds