ProStrakan Group plc, the UK-based specialty pharmaceutical company and a subsidiary of Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co., Ltd., has started the EU roll-out of its transdermal patch, Sancuso, for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

Sancuso is the first and only 5-hydroxytryptamine3 (5-HT3) receptor antagonist patch licensed for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in multi-day chemotherapy for patients with swallowing difficulties. The transdermal patch is applied to the upper arm and can be worn for seven days, providing continuous transdermal delivery of granisetron. This eliminates the need for injections or daily pills to control nausea and vomiting, a debilitating side effect that negatively impacts quality of life in cancer patients undergoing treatment. This simple-to-use treatment has been proven effective and tolerable in patients at risk of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

Commenting on the start of Sancuso’s EU launches, Tom Stratford, Chief Executive of ProStrakan, said, “The nausea and vomiting associated with some chemotherapy treatments can spell misery for some patients and, having proved a success in the US, we were keen to bring Sancuso to European patients and clinicians.” Stratford further added, “ProStrakan is a fast-growing business with a strategic focus on oncology-related products, in line with that of our parent company, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, and I am confident that the launch of Sancuso in the EU will further advance our growth in this important field.”

Sancuso transdermal patch is indicated in adults for the prevention of nausea and vomiting associated with moderately or highly emetogenic chemotherapy, for a planned duration of 3 to 5 consecutive days, where oral anti-emetic administration is complicated by factors making swallowing difficult.

Sancuso has now been launched by ProStrakan’s own sales teams in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, with additional EU countries planned for 2014. The launches follow the approval of Sancuso by the European Medicines Evaluation Agency (EMEA) in 2012.

Sancuso was first launched in the US in 2008 and has been successfully marketed there by ProStrakan since then.

ProStrakan Group plc is a rapidly growing specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialisation of prescription medicines for the treatment of unmet therapeutic needs in major markets.