Pharmaxis' First Product, Aridol, Approved by Therapeutic Goods Administration

Specialist pharmaceutical company Pharmaxis Ltd announced today that the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has approved its first product, Aridol(TM), for commercial sale in Australia. This represents a rare example of an Australian human therapeutic product developed in Australia from concept to commercialisation. Aridol is designed to identify patients with active asthma and provide information on the severity of the disease and the effectiveness of their current treatment. More than 2 million people in Australia and 52 million people worldwide live with the disease. Currently, there is no registered, objective test to measure inflammation and hyper-responsiveness in the airways -- the symptoms of active asthma. Aridol fills this gap. Alan Robertson, Pharmaxis chief executive officer said: "This is a significant milestone for Pharmaxis, and demonstrates the capability and potential of the company. The assistance and advice of the TGA has been very helpful as we have moved Aridol through its development and evaluation to final commercialisation. We have full commercial rights to Aridol, and we can now set about building a profitable Aridol business. "Aridol offers better health outcomes for people with asthma and the product launch preparations are under way. Our marketing program will initially make Aridol available to respiratory specialists and laboratories. Aridol was conceived over ten years ago, and today's decision represents the culmination of significant effort by many people over many years." Pharmaxis will market Aridol directly in Australia, and is negotiating European marketing agreements with specialised companies that are committed to improving standards in respiratory care, two of which are already in place. "Source":[ http://www.pharmalive.com/News/index.cfm?articleid=325152&categoryid=29].

---