Hikma signs licensing agreement to bring innovative oncology treatment to MENA

AMMAN — Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC (Hikma) on Wednesday announced an exclusive licensing agreement with pharmaand GmbH (pharma&), a global pharmaceutical company based in Vienna, Austria.

The agreement grants Hikma exclusive rights to commercialise rucaparib across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the Jordan New Agency, Petra, reported.

Rucaparib, marketed as Rubraca, is an innovative small-molecule oral therapy designed to inhibit poly (ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARPs), a family of proteins critical to DNA repair in cancer cells.

This mechanism makes rucaparib an “important” treatment option for patients battling ovarian cancer, the eighth most common cancer in women globally, and prostate cancer, the fourth most common cancer worldwide and the second most common cancer in men.

Rucaparib has received regulatory approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA).

Hikma Executive Vice Chairperson and President of MENA Mazen Darwazah said: "We are pleased to add rucaparib, an innovative oncology treatment, to our growing oncology portfolio in MENA.” 

“This agreement is a major step to further enhance patients’ access to life-changing treatments and address critical medical needs across the region. By strengthening our oncology portfolio, we reaffirm our commitment to providing advanced cancer treatments and supporting our purpose of putting better health within reach, every day,” Darwazah added.

As the company’s first innovative small-molecule oral therapy in oncology approved by the USFDA and EMA, this partnership boosts Hikma’s promise of providing better access to life saving treatment options and its commitment to improving patient outcomes, he noted.