Teva Pharmaceuticals, a U.S. affiliate of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE and TASE: TEVA), and MedinCell (Euronext: MEDCL) announced todaythat the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved UZEDY (risperidone) extended-release injectable suspension for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. UZEDY is the first subcutaneous, long-acting formulation of risperidone that utilizes SteadyTeq™, a copolymer technology proprietary to MedinCell that controls the steady release of risperidone. Therapeutic blood concentrations are reached within 6-24 hours of a single dose.1
“UZEDY embodies Teva’s commitment to bringing innovative advances to patients and to providing people living with schizophrenia an important new treatment option that was designed to address certain treatment challenges and may decrease the risk of relapse,” said Richard Francis, President and CEO of Teva. “The approval of UZEDY is a culmination of a multidisciplinary effort across Teva and MedinCell to bring this important treatment to market. This milestone is a testament to advancing our robust biopharmaceutical pipeline of innovative medicines that aim to support more people living with mental health disorders and neurological diseases in the coming years.”
Approximately 80% of patients with schizophrenia experience multiple relapses over the first five years of treatment,2 most commonly due to suboptimal adherence to treatment with oral antipsychotics. Each relapse carries a biological risk of loss of function, treatment refractoriness, and changes in brain morphology.3,4
Schizophrenia is a chronic, progressive and severely debilitating mental health disorder that affects how one thinks, feels and acts.5 This approval is based on data from two Phase 3 trials evaluating UZEDY in patients with schizophrenia: TV46000-CNS-30072 (the RISE Study – The Risperidone Subcutaneous Extended-Release Study) and TV46000-CNS-30078 (the SHINE Study – A Study to Test TV-46000 for Maintenance Treatment of Schizophrenia).
"The approval of the first product formulated with our technology is a pivotal moment for MedinCell and for the many patients who will benefit,” said Christophe Douat, CEO of MedinCell. “We are committed to supporting patients through innovative therapy options. It continues to be a wonderful journey with Teva, an ideal partner to harness the full potential of UZEDY. Our technology reaching commercial stage marks the start of an exciting new era for MedinCell and we are extremely proud to share this very special moment with all our employees and shareholders."
The use of novel SteadyTeq technology in UZEDY controls the release of risperidone over time. The initiation of treatment requires no loading dose or oral supplementation. Therapeutic blood concentrations are reached within 6-24 hours of a single dose.1
“Treatments for schizophrenia are largely prescribed as daily oral medications, which can present challenges with adherence due to missed doses. Lack of adherence to treatment with oral antipsychotics is the most common cause of relapse in schizophrenia,6 so there’s a role for therapies that are dosed in one- or two-month dosing intervals to help prevent relapse,” said Christoph Correll, MD, professor of psychiatry at the Zucker School of Medicine, Hempstead, NY. “As a clinician, I am excited to now have a new treatment option that reduces the risk of relapse1 for this complex disease and helps address some of the barriers around receiving schizophrenia treatment.”
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About Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a chronic, progressive and severely debilitating mental disorder that affects how one thinks, feels and acts. Patients experience an array of symptoms, which may include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech or behavior and impaired cognitive ability. Approximately 1% of the world’s population will develop schizophrenia in their lifetime, and 3.5 million people in the U.S. are currently diagnosed with the condition. Although schizophrenia can occur at any age, the average age of onset tends to be in the late teens to the early 20s for men, and the late 20s to early 30s for women. The long-term course of schizophrenia is marked by episodes of partial or full remission broken by relapses that often occur in the context of psychiatric emergency and require hospitalization. Approximately 80% of patients experience multiple relapses over the first five years of treatment, and each relapse carries a biological risk of loss of function, treatment refractoriness, and changes in brain morphology. Patients are often unaware of their illness and its consequences, contributing to treatment nonadherence, high discontinuation rates, and ultimately, significant direct and indirect healthcare costs from subsequent relapses and hospitalizations.
About UZEDY
UZEDY (risperidone) extended-release injectable suspension, for subcutaneous use rather than intramuscular use, is indicated for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. In clinical trials, UZEDY reduced the risk of relapse by up to 80%. UZEDY administers risperidone through copolymer technology under license from MedinCell that allows for absorption and sustained release in the first subcutaneous injection. UZEDY is the only long-acting, subcutaneous formulation of risperidone available in both one- and two-month dosing intervals.1 For full prescribing information, visit https://www.uzedy.com/globalassets/uzedy/prescribing-information.pdf.
About Teva
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE and TASE: TEVA) has been developing and producing medicines to improve people’s lives for more than a century. We are a global leader in generic, biosimilar and innovative medicines with a portfolio consisting of over 3,500 products in nearly every therapeutic area. Around 200 million people around the world take a Teva medicine every day, and are served by one of the largest and most complex supply chains in the pharmaceutical industry. Along with our established presence in generics, we have significant innovative research and operations supporting our growing portfolio of innovative medicines and biopharmaceutical products. Learn more at www.tevapharm.com.
About MedinCell
MedinCell is an innovative pharmaceutical company with a portfolio of long-acting injectable products, from development to market, in various therapeutic areas. MedinCell proprietary technology BEPO® (licensed to Teva under the name SteadyTeq) makes it possible to control the delivery of a drug at a therapeutic dose for several days, weeks or months starting from the subcutaneous or local injection of a simple deposit of a few millimeters, fully bioresorbable. MedinCell collaborate with tier one pharmaceuticals companies and foundations to improve Global Health through new therapeutic options. Based in Montpellier, MedinCell currently employs more than 140 people representing over 25 different nationalities. www.medincell.com
1 UZEDY™ (risperidone) extended-release injectable suspension, for subcutaneous injection Current Prescribing Information. Parsippany, NJ. Teva Neuroscience, Inc.
2 Emsley, R., & Kilian, S. (2018). Efficacy and safety profile of paliperidone palmitate injections in the management of patients with schizophrenia: an evidence-based review. Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, 14, 205–223.
3 Emsley, R., Chiliza, B., Asmal, L. et al. (2013) The nature of relapse in schizophrenia. BMC Psychiatry 13, 50.
4 Andreasen, N. C., et al. (2013). Relapse duration, treatment intensity, and brain tissue loss in schizophrenia: a prospective longitudinal MRI study. The American journal of psychiatry, 170(6), 609–615.
5 Patel, K. R., Cherian, J., Gohil, K., & Atkinson, D. (2014). Schizophrenia: overview and treatment options. P & T: a peer-reviewed journal for formulary management, 39(9), 638–645..
6 Kane JM, Correll CU. Optimizing treatment choices to improve adherence and outcomes in schizophrenia. J Clin Psychiatry. 2019;80(5):IN18031AH1C. doi:10.4088/JCP.IN18031AH1C.
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