MRI Contrast Agent Enters Chinese Market

An MRI contrast agent that permits early detection of liver lesions has been approved for use in China by the Chinese State Drug Administration (SDA). Around 240 million people in China are carriers of the hepatitis B virus, a leading cause of hepatoma, one of the top 10 cancers in China.

The contrast agent is fermoxide, called Feridex (or Endorem in Europe), was developed by Advanced Magnetics Inc. (Cambridge, MA, USA). The agent is being commercialized by Pharmagenesis Inc. (Palo Alto, CA, USA; www.pharmagenesis.net), a company engaged in developing anticancer therapies from purified extracts of plants that have been employed in traditional Chinese medicine for more than 4,000 years. Pharmagenesis has been providing Feridex to Chinese oncology and teaching hospitals.

"We are encouraged by the wide acceptance of Feridex by oncology doctors in China,” said Nicolas Druz, CEO and chairman of Pharmagenesis. "The launch of Feridex is an excellent preparation for our plans to import more oncology-related Western drugs to China.”


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