Dendreon upbeat on Provenge sales

US biotech firm Dendreon (Nasdaq: DNDN) pleased investors last week when it reported that revenue of its breakthrough prostate cancer treatment Provenge (sipuleucel-T) are stronger than expected, pushing the firm’s shares more than 50% higher to $11.06 in morning trading on January 5, but still leaving the stock down nearly 75% in past six months as sales of the product struggled, partly due to its high treatment cost - about $93,000 per round of therapy - and uncertainties about reimbursement (The Pharma Letters passim).

Provenge is Dendreon’s only marketed product and, fourth quarter ended December 31, 2011, gross product revenue was around $82 million. This represents approximately 25% growth over the third quarter ended September 30, 2011, and about 230% growth compared to the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2010. In addition, Dendreon reported full-year gross revenues from Provenge sales of around $228 million. However, this is well below a previous forecast of 2011 sales at $350 million to $400 million that Dendreon withdrew in August.

RBC analyst Michael Yee estimated that Provenge sales on a net basis in the fourth quarter totalled $77 million, compared with a consensus forecast of $72 million, saying: "This suggests business may be tracking ahead of current street estimates over the near-term."