LEO Pharma and US-based Warner Chilcott have extended their co-operation to include the full LEO Pharma portfolio of present and future psoriasis treatments. Warner Chilcott is presently marketing Dovonex under a co-promotion deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS) and is currently preparing for the launch of Dovobet in the first half of 2006.

LEO Pharma submitted a new drug application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in March 2005. Subject to approval by the FDA, Warner Chilcott expects to initiate marketing of Dovobet in the second quarter of 2006. The extension of the co-operation also means that Warner Chilcott will have first right of refusal to the US rights to dermatology drugs from LEO Pharma through 2010.

"Our collaboration with LEO will enable us to market a wide array of safe and effective treatment options for psoriasis," said Roger Boissonneault. He emphasized that the arrangement with LEO Pharma extends beyond psoriasis.

LEO Pharma's Dovonex, the leading non-steroidal topical treatment for psoriasis, has been marketed in the US by Warner Chilcott under a co-promotion deal since 2003. LEO believes that the market potential of its products in the US will be enhanced by having a partner focused on dermatology.

In the future, LEO Pharma will be developing dermatology products simultaneously for the US and European markets. This is also the case for products currently in development for scalp and facial psoriasis.