Alchemia granted oncology patent extension

Alchemia (ASX:ACL) has received an extension for a patent covering its cancer drug technologies, securing protection through to 2025.

The US Patent and Trademark Office has extended the expiry date for a patent covering the company’s HyACT cancer drug delivery platform until March 2025.

The patent also covers HA-Irinotecan, the company’s lead cancer drug in development, which is in phase III trials for metastatic colorectal cancer. Based on the HyACT platform, HA-Irinotecan is a combination of off-patent chemotherapy drug irinotecan with hyaluronic acid.

The patent was initially due to expire in 2021, but Alchemia had already received an extension until 2023. The new 2025 expiry date is subject to any restrictions imposed by the patent office in the future.

Alchemia has also been awarded another patent protecting its method for producing generic fondaparinux, an anticoagulant being sold as a treatment and preventative for deep vein thrombosis.

This patent expires in September 2022, although the parent patent is eligible for extension for a further 260 days.

Alchemia’s marketing partner for the generic fondaparinux, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, has been selling the product in the US since July 2011. The company this week launched the product in India and is also pursuing marketing approval in Europe.

Alchemia aims to spin off its oncology business into a standalone company, but hit a snag in its plan late last year.

Alchemia shares were trading 1.52% lower at $0.325 as of around 2 pm on Thursday.