Accentia enters strategic agreement with Baxter to purchase Cytoxan drug

Nov 29 2010

Accentia Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCQB: ABPI) today announced a strategic agreement with Baxter Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: BAX) to provide Accentia with the exclusive, worldwide right to purchase Baxter's cyclophosphamide, which is marketed under the brand name Cytoxan®, for the treatment of designated autoimmune diseases including multiple sclerosis. Cyclophosphamide is the active drug used in Revimmune™ therapy, Accentia's proprietary system-of-care being developed for the treatment of a broad range of autoimmune diseases.

“We are pleased that, through this agreement, we will be able to support Accentia Biopharmaceuticals in the ongoing development of Revimmune”

The agreement also grants Accentia with the exclusive right for designated indications to reference Baxter's proprietary, historical data related to cyclophosphamide as part of Accentia's planned clinical and regulatory development of Revimmune. The agreement designates Baxter as Accentia's sole source of cyclophosphamide for Revimmune.

"We are pleased that, through this agreement, we will be able to support Accentia Biopharmaceuticals in the ongoing development of Revimmune," said Debasis Chakrabarti, M.D., Ph.D., Baxter's Therapeutic Area Leader for Oncology. "Further investigation of cyclophosphamide may identify a potentially valuable treatment option for patients with devastating autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, with high unmet medical need."

According to Accentia's President, Mr. Samuel S. Duffey, "We consider our agreement with Baxter to be highly strategic to Accentia's plans for the development and commercialization of Revimmune. We believe that the exclusive rights to purchase Cytoxan for designated indications and the ability to reference Baxter's data related to cyclophosphamide not only assures that Accentia will have access to the highest quality supply of cyclophosphamide, but also facilitates Accentia's regulatory strategy and reinforces its market position. With this agreement in place, we are planning a robust clinical and regulatory development strategy to advance our mission to establish Revimmune as a new standard-of-care treatment for patients suffering from autoimmune diseases, including orphan indications with potential accelerated regulatory pathways, as well as major indications such as multiple sclerosis."