Occlusin™ Injection
Product Overview
The Occlusin™ Injection agent will be ViRexx's lead product for the treatment of uterine fibroids and liver cancer. Based on the T-ACT™ platform technology, the product consists of solid biodegradable particles coated with a platelet-binding agent. These agents are delivered by catheter to the main vessels feeding the tumour.
Market Overview
The Occlusin™ Injection market is a global market.
| Globally | US | |
| Incidence | >60 million | 1.7 million |
| Prevalence | >500 million | 13.6 million |
| Target Market | >60 million | 2 million |
Source: National Women’s Health Information
Center; NIH
*Assuming similar patterns of incidence and prevalence found in
the USA
Uterine fibroids are benign (non-malignant) growths found in the muscular wall of the uterus. According to recent statistics released by the Canadian Coordinating Office of Health and Technology, 30% to 40% of women over the age of 30 years have uterine fibroids. Approximately 20% of these women experience severe, debilitating symptoms that affect everyday life. Of the over 30 million women in the US estimated to have fibroids, over 2 million suffer serious side effects. Fibroid symptoms include heavy bleeding, anaemia, pelvic pain and discomfort and an enlarged uterus.
Hysterectomy (complete removal of the uterus) or myomectomy (partial removal of the uterine wall) has been the treatment of choice for women suffering from severe side effects of uterine fibroids. These invasive surgical procedures call for long hospital stays and recovery time, post surgery. In contrast, uterine artery embolization ("UFE") is a minimally invasive technique delivered as an outpatient procedure with minimal recovery time.
UFE involves delivering tiny embolic particles to the blood vessels feeding the fibroid. The particles are delivered by catheter and function to block the vasculature associated with this benign tumour. Once the blood supply is cut off, the fibroid shrinks resulting in symptom relief.
Recent study results presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology annual meeting (March 2003) confirm the superiority of UFE over hysterectomy. Women treated by UFE had reduced hospital stay (0.8 days versus 2.3 days) and less time away from work (10.7 days versus 32.5 days) in comparison to hysterectomy. In addition, the UFE group experienced significant reductions in blood loss and pain associated with the procedure.
Liver Cancer |
||
| Global | US | |
| Primary Liver Cancer | ||
| Incidence | 626,162 | 15,000 |
| Prevalence | 786,489 | 20,900 |
| *Target Market | 110,400 | 20,900 |
| Secondary Liver Cancer | ||
| Incidence | 511,576 | 82,845 |
| Prevalence | 904,740 | 155,555 |
Source: GLOBOCAN 2002
*Incidence in the more developed countries of the world (Globocan
2002)
While primary liver cancer is not as prevalent in North America , in the less developed parts of the world such as Africa , Southeast Asia , and China , it is responsible for 50% of all cancer cases. This dramatic difference is believed to be due to the much higher prevalence of hepatitis B virus carriers in those regions, which predisposes to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma ("HCC"). According to GLOBOCAN 2000, the worldwide prevalence of primary liver cancer was estimated to be 565,000 cases and, of these, over 300,000 were located in China . The number of patients who died worldwide from primary liver cancer in 2000 was estimated to be 550,000.
In the US , the five-year survival rate for patients with all stages of liver cancer is 6%. The five year survival rate of American patients diagnosed with localized liver cancer is 14% and a mere 1% for patients with distant disease. There has been little improvement in the five-year survival rate for US liver cancer patients from the mid 1970s when the overall survival rate was 4%. (Source: American Cancer Society, 2002 Statistics.)
A significant number of patients develop liver cancer secondary to other types of cancer. For example, 50% of patients with colorectal cancer develop liver metastases. GLOBOCAN 2000 estimates indicate that close to 950,000 cases of colorectal cancer occurred worldwide in the year 2000. Other types of cancer that progress to liver cancer through metastasis includes: breast, lung, pancreatic, stomach, large bowel, kidney, ovarian, and uterine cancer.