Medicos Affiliate Mecox Curemed Registers Domestic Patent for Oral Formulation of Blood Cancer Chemotherapy Drug

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] MedicoX's affiliate, new drug developer MeCox CureMed, announced on the 5th that it has completed the domestic patent registration for the oral blood cancer anticancer drug Bendamustine. Early completion is also expected in the United States and Europe, where patent registration is currently underway.

MeCox CureMed has entered full-scale clinical trials for the blood cancer treatment Bendamustine and plans to complete Phase 1 clinical trials within the year. Phase 1 trials will be conducted on 30 patients with low-grade B-cell lymphoma at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital and Yeouido St. Mary's Hospital, two of the world's top five hospitals in the field of hematologic cancers. The trials will compare drug safety, pharmacokinetic properties, and clinical efficacy with the existing injectable form.

The new drug being developed by MeCox CureMed changes the administration route of the blood cancer anticancer drug Bendamustine from injection to oral form, enhancing safety, efficacy, convenience, and cost-effectiveness. It utilizes drug delivery technology based on cyclodextrin, one of the company's proprietary drug delivery technology platforms. The main targets are a wide range of blood cancers including follicular lymphoma, lymphocytic leukemia, and multiple myeloma.

Bendamustine, sold worldwide under the brand name Treanda, is an intravenous injection used to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), multiple myeloma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and is included in the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines.

Lee Pilgu, CEO of MeCox CureMed, said, "This patent is the first case of patent registration for oral Bendamustine," adding, "If the ongoing clinical trials by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety are successfully completed, it means that our company can exclusively exercise intellectual property rights for oral Bendamustine."

A MedicoX official stated, "The oral Bendamustine treatment being developed through MeCox CureMed is characterized by significantly improving patients' quality of life as it does not require hospitalization," and added, "Through this Phase 1 clinical trial and patent registration by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, we will emerge as a new leader in the field of new drugs with novel administration routes."

MedicoX is the largest shareholder of MeCox CureMed and participated in a 3 billion KRW paid-in capital increase last year to support clinical trial funding. Recently, the global new drug developer Oramed Pharmaceuticals secured domestic distribution license rights for oral insulin, which is currently undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials by the FDA.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.