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Nicht unbedingt was Neues, poste es aber trotzdem mal ..... Interview H. Lübbert mit "practical dermatology", Juli 2019: Take 5 with Hermann Lübbert, PhD, CEO, Biofrontera Founded in Germany as a research platform, Biofrontera began developing dermatologic products and eventually established a focus on photodynamic therapy. It entered the US market with the 2016 approval of Ameluz as part of a photodynamic therapy protocol for actinic keratosis (AK) on the face and scalp. Biofrontera this year acquired Cutanea Life Sciences. The company currently has about 100 employees in the US and plans to increase its sales force to 50 people, including five regional managers, by year’s end. Biofrontera CEO Hermann Lübbert, PhD spoke with Practical Dermatology about the company and its future. 1. PDT Has Potential Hermann Lübbert, PhD: We expect significant calls for PDT in the coming years because there’s a large number of patients currently being treated for actinic keratosis, particularly in the US—more in fact than other parts of the world relative to the population density. We think that PDT will achieve a higher market share within that disease, because it can be applied in a field-directed way. Our product is approved for mild to moderate AK on the face and scalp, and it has a very high efficiency and a very good cosmetic outcome. There are other indications that are currently being researched by dermatological investigators that could add to the potential of PDT beyond just AK. We expect significant growth over the next five to 10 years. 2. Cutanea Offers Opportunities Dr. Lübbert: What’s attractive about Cutanea is that it has two FDA-approved dermatology prescription drugs. These products are commercialized in the US and currently sold to dermatologists, so we can use it to leverage the cost of our sales force in the United States. Aktipak is a line extension product; it comes in a more stable form than the previous versions. But perhaps more exciting is a product called Xepi. Cutanea had licensed Xepi from a Spanish company called Ferrer. This is a new topical antibiotic. It’s a new chemical entity without any known existing drug resistance—which often becomes an issue with antibiotics. Within the space of antibiotics this is something that’s really exciting. It’s very rare that new antibiotics are introduced into dermatology, and the fact that there are no resistances provides to Xepi, we think, great potential. 3. Label Expansions Are a Focus Dr. Lübbert: We may acquire other products, of course, if a good opportunity arises. But really our major focus is currently—and we think that this will continue for several years—to broaden the labelled indications both for PDT and also for Xepi. Both have, we think, very strong potential indications that are currently untouched by these treatment modalities. We see developing these as a great opportunity to go forward with relatively little risk compared to completely new developments. That’s where we are going to put our focus and use our available capital. 4. Biofrontera Wants to Build Dr. Lübbert: The US is our primary target market. We already have about 70 percent of our revenue coming from this market and we expect this to grow, even in the course of the year. We will continue building the US operation. We are also growing in Germany, but not at the same pace that we grow in the US. Looking forward, we plan to build on our experience and our strong research and development base. At the same time, we will continue building upon our successful and powerful sales force to grow revenues at a consistent ramp. Revenues have doubled year over year from 2016 worldwide and even more than doubled in the United States. We are still loss-making but we forecast a breakeven point for the fourth quarter of this year. Within the year, we will aim to turn Biofrontera into a profitable small pharmaceutical company, and since we are stock-listed, being profitable should also add additional investor interest to the company. 5. Feedback Matters Dr. Lübbert: I think it’s very important as a company, particularly a small company, to rely on the input and feedback of your customers, and our customers are the dermatologists. When we entered the market or even before we entered the market, we reached out to opinion leaders in the United States for discussions that could help us better understand their needs and the needs of their patients. We had a very positive experience with the dermatology community in the United States from the start, and we hope to continue to build these connections. https://practicaldermatology.com/articles/2019-july/recent-d… (ganz unten) |
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| aus der Diskussion: | Biofrontera - Heiße Turnaround-Spekulation |
| Autor (Datum des Eintrages): | abgemeldet-486279 (21.08.19 18:46:23) |
| Beitrag: | 51,671 von 66,508 (ID:61311280) |
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