Portuguese drug launched in Germany

                         

A new drug to treat Parkinson’s disease made by Portuguese group Bial has been launched this week in Germany and the UK.

The medicine, whose active substance is Opicapona and which works by reducing the so-called off-time (period of profound immobility) in Parkinson’s patients, was given the green light by the European Commission in June.

Germany and the UK became the first countries to sell the drug on Wednesday this week, and it should be available on other European markets, including Portugal, from next year.

According to figures from Bial, there are currently around 260,000 Parkinson’s patients in Germany, and 120,000 patients in the UK. Their markets are estimated to be worth €400 million and €165 million, respectively.

António Portela, CEO of Bial, said studies carried out on the drug show it is “a new, safe and efficient treatment option with the advantage of only being taken once a day, as adjunctive treatment in adult patients with Parkinson’s disease and motor fluctuations that are not controlled with other therapies.”

“We are very happy with this new Bial drug already being made available in Germany and the UK, countries where we have recently opened branches. This new medicine reflects our investment in Investigation & Development, our internationalisation project and, naturally, the completion of our mission to find solutions to health problems for people around the world”, the head of the pharmaceutical company added.

The European Parkinson’s Disease Association (EPDA) estimates that some 1.2 million people within the EU suffer from the disease, including 22,000 Portuguese.

Parkinson’s is a progressive disease of the nervous system marked by tremor, muscular rigidity, and slow, imprecise movement, chiefly affecting middle-aged and elderly people. It is associated with degeneration of the basal ganglia of the brain and a deficiency of the neurotransmitter dopamine.

Bial, which has products available in more than 50 countries, first started studying the molecule of the new drug some 11 years ago.