Aricept Approved In Second Market

Eisai's second-generation acetylcholinesterase inhibitor Aricept(donepezil hydrochloride; formerly known as E2020) has been approved for the treatment of mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease in its second world market, the UK. A spokesman for Eisai said that no launch date had been set and that packaging and pricing issues still had to be decided. Pfizer will copromote the drug in the UK.

Aricept was launched to wholesalers and retailers in its first market, the USA, earlier this year (Marketletter January 27), and a general launch there was scheduled before the end of February. In the USA, Aricept has been set at a lower price than the only other approved drug for AD, Warner-Lambert's Cognex (tacrine), and offers significant safety and ease-of-administration advantages.

Eisai will now seek further marketing authorizations in Europe through the mutual recognition procedure, using the UK as the reference member state. The compound is in Phase III trials in Japan.