Sun Pharma to acquire Novartis’s branded drug Odomzo

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd will acquire the NOVARTIS’s branded cancer drug Odomzo for an upfront payment of $175 million.

Odomzo is the brand of Sonidegib.  Sonidegib is a Hedgehog signaling pathway inhibitor being developed as an anticancer agent by Novartis. 

Odomzo is a hedgehog pathway inhibitor indicated for the treatment of advanced basal cell carcinoma (BCC) that recurs following a surgery or a radiation therapy, or for patients who are not candidates for surgery or radiation therapy. 

Non-melanoma skin cancer is the most common form of skin cancer globally. BCC accounts for approximately 80% of non-melanoma skin cancers, accounting for over 2 million cases in the US alone. BCC consists of abnormal, uncontrolled growths or lesions that arise in the skin’s basal cells, which line the outermost layer of the skin.

It is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced basal-cell carcinoma that has recurred following surgery or radiation therapy, or those who are not candidates for surgery or radiation therapy

Odomzo has marketing approval in over 30 countries globally including the US, Europe and Australia. Odomzo was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in July 2015.

Approximately, 70% of the prescribers are dermatologists and the rest are oncologists for this class of drug. 

According to IMS Health, the hedgehog inhibitor class grew by 40% on-year in the 12 months ended October 2016.