Chong Kun Dang strengthens its oncology business

Signs agreements for Nexavar and Neulapeg

Acquires rights to Nexavar and Stivarga + copartnership agreement to jointly sell Neulapeg

Expects synergy with existing products such as Camtobell...expects it to double anticancer business performance

Chong Kun Dang is tightening the reins on its oncology business.

 

It recently acquired the right for the liver cancer drugs ‘Nexavar (sorafenib)' and ‘Stivarga (regorafenib)' and neutropenia drug ‘Neulapeg (pegfilgrastim)' in the recent month.

 

The company expects the drugs to create synergy with its existing pipeline of anti-cancer drugs centered on the in-house developed drug Camtobell (belotecan).

 

The company expects sales related to its Oncology business are also expected to increase to twice the existing level.

 

Neulapeg in addition to Nexavar and Stivarga… acquired 3 types of oncology drugs in one month Chong Kun Dang announced on the 26th that it has signed a partnership agreement with GC Biopharma to jointly market Neulapeg.

 

GC Biopharma will jointly conduct domestic sales and marketing, and Chong Kun Dang will exclusively distribute Neulapeg in Korea.

 

Neulapeg is a second-generation neutropenia treatment developed by GC Biopharma in 2015 with its own technology.

 

It is a drug that prevents hematologic side effects when the patients' immunity is reduced due to decreased neutrophil levels during chemotherapy, which increases the risk of infection.

 

The company applied its PEGylation technology, which increases the half-life of the drug and enhances its stability compared to existing treatments.

 

Compared to the first-generation treatment, which required four to six doses per cycle, the drug is said to provide the same effect with only one dose per cycle, greatly improving patient convenience.

 

On the 6th of this month, the company signed an exclusive domestic sales agreement with Bayer Korea for the liver cancer treatment Nexavar and Stivarga.

 

Chong Kun Dang will be in charge of exclusive distribution, sales, and marketing of Nexavar and Stivaga in domestic hospitals from this month.

 

Nexavar and Stivarga are targeted therapies for liver cancer.

 

Nexavar is used for the first-line treatment of liver cancer and Stivarga is used for the second-line treatment.

 

When used together, Nexavar and Stivarga can offer sequential treatment for liver cancer.

 

#Synergies with existing products such as Camtobell expected...

 

Expected to double sales in the anti-cancer business With the recent acquisition of Nexavar, Stivaga, and now Neulapeg, Chong Kun Dang has expanded its lineup of anti-cancer drugs and adjuvants.

 

The company expects the newly acquired products to synergize with its existing anticancer drugs.

 

(from the left) Nexavar, Stivarga, Neulapeg

Chong Kun Dang previously owned 12 anti-cancer drugs, including its in-house-developed drug, Camtobell.

 

Camtobell is a camptothecin-based anticancer drug developed by Chong Kun Dang in 2004 with its technology.

 

It is Chong Kun Dang’s first new drug and the third new anti-cancer drug in Korea.

 

It is used for recurrent ovarian cancer and small-cell lung cancer.

 

In addition, ▲Lenaloma Cap (lenalidomide) and Tezobel (bortezomib) for multiple myeloma ▲ Leukeevec (imatinib) for chronic myeloid leukemia ▲Belotaxel (docetaxel), a cytotoxic anticancer drug used for breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer ▲Beloxa (oxaliplatin) for metastatic colon and rectal cancer ▲Eloceta (elotinib) and Iretinib (gefitinib), targeted therapies for non-small cell lung cancer, ▲Gemtan (gemcitabine) and Pemecine (pemetrexed), cytotoxic anticancer drugs for prostate cancer, Calutami (bicalutamide), and ▲Caelyx (doxorubicin) for metastatic breast cancer.

 

These products generate annual sales of around KRW 40 billion.

 

According to drug market research institution IQVIA, the combined sales of Chong Kun Dang’s 12 existing anti-cancer drugs as of 2023 was KRW 39.6 billion.

 

If new items worth around KRW 35 billion are added to this, Chong Kun Dang’s anticancer sales are expected to double.

 

Nexavar and Stivarga will jointly generate sales of KRW 14.2 billion in 2023.

 

Neulapeg generated sales of KRW 19.3 billion.

 

In addition to introducing new products, the company is also strengthening its internal oncology business.

 

At the time of the introduction of Nexavar and Stivarga, CEO Young-Zu Kim explained, “Chong Kun Dang has recently strengthened its expertise in the oncology drug sector by establishing a dedicated oncology drug organization.” 'ADC anti-cancer drugs'-'shRNA anti-cancer drugs' are being developed in-house...“to expand its oncology drug portfolio” In the mid-to-long term, it is also expecting synergy with its own anti-cancer drug under development.

 

In February 2023, Chong Kun Dang signed a contract with the Dutch company Synaffix to introduce antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) technology and secured the rights to use 3 ADC platform technologies to develop ADC anticancer drugs.

 

In April of last year, it signed a license agreement with Curigin, a company developing RNAi-based gene therapy, for its bispecific shRNA candidate substance 'CA102.' Chong Kun Dang plans to secure global rights to Curigin’s anticancer drug candidate substance 'CA102' and conduct exclusive research and development and commercialization with superficial bladder cancer as its first indication.

 

In addition to this, the company is planning to introduce the Keytruda (pembrolizumab) biosimilar in Korea.

 

In 2022, Chong Kun Dang signed an exclusive supply and sales contract with Singapore's Favorex for the Keytruda biosimilar in Korea.

 

“Chong Kun Dang has sales power and expertise in the field of anticancer drugs, including Camtobell, which was developed with the company’s proprietary technology,” said a Chong Kun Dang official.

 

”We will expand our anticancer drug portfolio to further expand our presence in the domestic anticancer drug market.”