Can-Fite receives milestone payment from CKD Pharmaceuticals, its distribution partner in Korea.
Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd., a biotechnology company advancing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs that address cancer, liver and inflammatory diseases, announced it has received a milestone payment in the amount of $500,000 from Chong Kun Dang Pharmaceuticals (CKD), which has licensed the exclusive right to distribute Namodenoson (CF102) for the treatment of liver cancer in Korea upon receipt of regulatory approvals.
This is the second payment received by Can-Fite, as part of the Korean distribution agreement with CKD which is valued at up to $3,000,000 in upfront and milestone payments plus 23 percent royalties on sales of Namodenoson. Can-Fite has received $1,000,000 to date from CKD and may receive up to an additional $2,000,000 in milestone payments.
“Namodenoson’s clinical development in the treatment of liver cancer is advancing, as marked by our recent completion of patient enrollment in the U.S., Europe and Israel in our Phase II study of patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma with underlying Child-Pugh Class B cirrhosis,” stated Can-Fite CEO Dr. Pnina Fishman. “We are pleased to work with CKD in Korea to advance Namodenoson.”
Under the distribution agreement with CKD, Can-Fite will supply Namodenoson to CKD, which will be responsible for all costs and activities associated with development, regulatory approvals, marketing, sales and distribution of Namodenoson in Korea. This agreement with CKD marks Can-Fite’s second distribution and licensing deal in Korea, where the Company’s drug candidate Piclidenoson has been out-licensed to Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical Co. for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
Some 51,000 people had liver cancer in Korea, with 11,000 deaths, in 2012 according to a study published in Cancer Research and Treatment: Official Journal of Korean Cancer Association 2015.
(Source: Business Wire)
