Xechem accelerates facility's construction as demand for sickle cell drug Nicosan exceeds supply

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, July 26 - Xechem International, Inc. said Wednesday that response to the first limited sales and distribution of Nicosan, its new product for the prophylactic management of sickle cell disease, by subsidiary Xechem Pharmaceuticals Nigeria, Ltd., has been far greater than anticipated.

Xechem Nigeria has broken ground for a new state-of-the-art commercial scale production facility and accelerated the facility's construction schedule, according to a company news release.

Xechem Nigeria, which received regulatory approval for Nicosan, its first major breakthrough "natural herbal drug," on July 3 from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control of Nigeria, has been producing the drug in limited quantities at its pilot scale facility in Abuja, Nigeria.

Xechem Nigeria's new commercial scale facility will have capacity to meet the demand of Nigeria and other African countries, officials said.

Nigeria alone has 4 million sickle cell disease patients. The new facility also will be able to supply the drug for the clinical trials in the United States and the European Union, officials said.

The drug is taken through one-a-day capsules which, once started, must be taken daily by the patient.

The current price for a month's supply for adults is 3,000 Naira and costs pediatric patients 2,400 Naira, officials said.

Xechem said it also is accepting mail orders for the drug from other states within Nigeria.

The financing for this first phase of construction was supplied by Nigerian Export-Import Bank, which loaned Xechem Nigeria 150 million Naira in June of this year.

Xechem said it estimates that the expanded facility will be fully operational within nine months.

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder caused by an abnormality in the hemoglobin molecule.

Xechem is a New Brunswick, N.J., biopharmaceutical company.

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