Rusan Pharma Launches New Drug to Treat Parkinson’s Disease

Rusan Pharma said it has launched Apomorphine Hydrochloride injection, the first ever such medication for Parkinson’s Disease in India. The drug was recently approved by the India drug regulator Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). Sold under brand name APOSAN, it is used for the treatment of motor fluctuations in patients with chronic Parkinson’s Disease, who are not sufficiently controlled by oral anti-Parkinson’s medication currently available in India. APOSAN will be available in the form of injections, pen and continuous infusion pumps. Rusan controls the end-to-end production of the drug, from formulation to API to ensure continuous supplies for the Indian PD patients. The company is one of the few manufacturers globally to produce the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) of Apomorphine Hydrochloride.  The company has been exporting its API to the global market where the finished formulation has been available for than a decade. “Being a Make in India product, we want to ensure the treatment is affordable and accessible to all PD patients. Since, PD is a chronic disease, we aim to bring the per day cost to patients down to an affordable price,” said Kunal Saxena, MD, Rusan Pharma.

Rusan price APOSAN at one-fourth of the price sold in UK. The cost of the product for a daily dose (between 30 – 60 mg), in India will range between Rs 475 and Rs 950 per day as compared to Apomorphine Pens in the UK ranging between Rs 2250 to Rs 4500 per day. To ensure ease of use, Rusan will be launching the APOSAN pens and continuous infusion pumps which will be provided free of cost to the patients with Rusan’s APOSAN therapy. Rusan said it will also be launching the APOSAN Hope therapy which will consist of paramedics who will offer support free of cost to doctors, nurses, patients and their caregivers on the safe and effective use of the APOSAN range of products. Saxena said the company plans to end the financial year FY19 with Rs 350 crore in sales. Founded in 1994, the company is engaged in de-addiction and pain management products in the domestic and international markets. – Money Control