J&J, Macleods in talks for licence deal of tuberculosis drug

MUMBAI: Mumbai-based Macleods Pharmaceuticals and US drug giant Johnson & Johnson(J&J) are in talks for a voluntary licence deal for the tuberculosis drug Bedaquiline, EThas learnt.
The talks, which are in early stage, will allow Macleods to manufacture generic version of the drug, a move if goes through will improve access to this new TB drug. Bedaquiline sold under the brand name of Sirturo by Janseen (a subsidiary of J&J) is a new TB drug approved by the US Food Administration after 40 years. The drug is prescribed for patients of Xtreme Drug Resistant (XDR) TB i.e. it is for those patients who have failed to show any improvement on the current regimen treatment.

The other drug for the treatment of XDR TB is by Japanese drugmaker Otsuka, sold under brand name of Delamanid.

J&J and Macleods did not respond to an email query sent by ET.

Presently J&J has offered this drug free of cost to health ministry’s Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program (RNTCP) under a conditional access programme. However, aid organisations have questioned such conditional access programme on the grounds that several patients are being denied the drugs because of the restrictive nature of the charitable programme. “It is widely accepted that donations of medical products and health technology are difficult for both treatment providers and ministries of health to manage effectively and are not sustainable for ensuring long-term access to treatment for patients,” said Medicines Sans Frontiers (MSF), an aid organisation, in a statement.

Patients can either go through the government programme or import the drug in India through J&J, it costs approximately $900 for a six-month treatment for Bedaquiline and $1,500 for Delamanid, according to MSF.