Photocure receives grant of MNOK 9.1 from the Research Council of Norway
Oslo, Norway, April 4, 2008.
Photocure has been awarded NOK 9.1 million for the next three years from The Research Council of Norway (RCN) high-profile programme "User-driven Research-based Innovation" (BIA). Photocure received the grant for the project "Early detection of premalign conditions in colon when using fluorescence colonoscopy".
In this project, Photocure will develop fluorescence-based photodynamic diagnosis to improve detection of tumors compared to standard colonoscopy in patients with suspicion of colorectal cancer.
The grant will be used to develop an oral formulation of the compound hexylaminolevulinate and fund clinical studies in the development program.
Kjetil Hestdal MD. Ph.D., President and CEO of Photocure comments: "The grant from the RCN is important for the development of the colon project. The current grant will give Photocure financial support through this first, crucial phase of the development of the drug formulation and clinical studies. The RCN's BIA program is vital for innovative projects like the colon fluorescence project. In addition to the financial implications of the grant, I am pleased to register that the independent evaluators of the RCN share our belief in the photodynamic technology."
Photocure ASA is a Norwegian pharmaceutical listed on Oslo Stock Exchange. The company develops and sells pharmaceuticals and medical devices based on proprietary photodynamic technologies, targeting key dermatology and oncology markets.
Photocure has two products with sales and marketing approvals: Metvix®, which is a product developed for the treatment of skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma) and pre-cancerous skin lesions (actinic keratosis), and Hexvix®, which is developed for the diagnosis of bladder cancer. Both products are based on the same photodynamic technology, combining the drug known as a photosensitiser with a light source that activates the photosensitiser. Photocure aims to develop a pipeline of follow-on products and technologies.
For further information, contact:
Photocure ASA
Attn. Kjetil Hestdal (President and CEO) or Christian Fekete (CFO)
Kjetil Hestdal (kh@photocure.no), Mobile: +47 913 19 535
Christian Fekete (cf@photocure.no), Mobile: +47 916 42 938