Gruenenthal's Transtec cleared in EU markets.

Gruenenthal of Germany's three-day analgesic patch Transtec(buprenorphine) has been approved in Ireland, the UK, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Luxembourg and Italy under the European Union's mutual recognition procedure. Germany acted as the rapporteur for the application, which sought approval for the product as a treatment for moderate-to-severe cancer pain and severe pain which does not respond to non-opioid analgesics. Transtec debuted in Switzerland in January 2001, and this was followed by a German launch the following September. In the UK and Ireland, Transtec will be sold by Napp, while elsewhere Gruenenthal will self-market the product.