In recent years, the incidence of prostate cancer in China has grown rapidly, by as much as 12% each year. This cancer has become the most common type of malignant tumour in the male urinary system in China and a serious threat to male health. Both industry and patients have paid attention to prostate cancer treatment and Chinese prostate cancer patients are expected to have new choices besides surgery, radiotherapy and other current therapies. Recently, Sanpower’s New Healthcare acquired the first cellular immunotherapy for prostate cancer to be approved for sale in the US by the FDA and the company now hopes to introduce this therapy into China.

Sanpower Group and Valeant reached an equity acquisition agreement

On 9 January, Pacific Standard Time, the privately-held Chinese firm Sanpower Group reached an equity acquisition agreement with Valeant, a well-known company in the global biomedical industry, to acquire Provenge, the world’s first cellular immunotherapy for prostate cancer treatment. Provenge is the first listed autologous cellular immunotherapy for prostate cancer treatment approved by the United States FDA as well as the only cellular immunotherapy for prostate cancer treatment currently available. The deal is the first time a Chinese firm has acquired an original pharmaceutical from the USA and the transaction amount of 819 million US dollars has set a record as the largest pharmaceutical acquisition in the USA by a Chinese enterprise. At present, Provenge is covered by major health insurance schemes in the US and it is the first line of treatment for advanced prostate cancer as recommended by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN).

How does the Provenge treat prostate cancer? In simple terms, it uses a patient’s own immune system to fight against the tumours by re-programming a person’s own immune cells so that they may identify and attack the advanced prostate cancer cells. Through systematic clinical use, by re-programming the immune cells to treat the prostate cancer, Provenge has proven that immune systems can effectively curb tumours and prolong lives, thus opening the door to immunotherapy.

At present, due to a lack of domestic standards for cellular immunotherapy and both good and bad treatments jostling for space in the cellular immunotherapy field, the interests of patients have been damaged by a number of non-standard treatments, which has made cellular immunotherapy a controversial treatment. However, in mid-December 2016, the Centre for Drug Evaluation of the China Food and Drug Administration released its Technical Guidelines for Research and Evaluation of Cellular Products (Exposure Draft), which developed detailed general and common guidelines for the domestic cellular therapy industry. Industry insiders have said that the entire field of cellular treatment will see much growth in the future with the release of the official draft.

It has been reported that Sanpower’s New Healthcare plans to introduce Provenge into China and other major Asian markets in the future, bringing domestic prostate cancer patients access to cutting-edge immunotherapy. Prof. Xue Wei, the director of the Department of Urology at Renji Hospital affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University, believes that Provenge has proven to be a safe and effective treatment for prostate cancer. He said that the introduction of this mature and standardized immunotherapy will mean that domestic prostate cancer patients can obtain the best treatment for their cancer. It will also provide domestic regulators with a reference point and demonstration to assist in the development of immunotherapy standards, benefiting China and its people.

Source: http://www.js.xinhuanet.com/2017-01/10/c_1120282291.htm