Helsinn and Mundipharma collaborate on netupitant-palonosetron for China

Privately-held Swiss drugmakers Helsinn and Mundipharma have signed a new, exclusive license and distribution agreement, covering China, Hong Kong and Macao, for netupitant-palonosetron fixed dose combination (NEPA), a Helsinn product under development for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

This agreement, financial terms of which were not disclosed, consolidates the alliance between the companies which was established with the granting of rights to the same combination product sealed earlier this year in Middle East and North African countries and in late 2012 in selected South-Eastern Asian countries. Besides China, Hong Kong and Macao, the Mundipharma group of companies therefore plans to distribute the product in further key markets in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and North Africa.

NEPA is a fixed dose combination of netupitant, a novel NK1 receptor antagonist and palonosetron, a second generation 5-HT3 receptor antagonist already present in the main global markets under the trade names Aloxi, Onicit and Paloxi.