There Could Be More Hope For Alcohol Addicts As This Company Enters U.S. Addiction Treatment And Relapse Prevention Market

For people suffering from any type of addiction, getting the best medical care can make a significant difference in their journey to recovery.

In the case of alcohol abuse, for example, the talk about care has become more critical because America’s addiction crisis seemed to deepen partly because of COVID-19.

Commonly known as alcohol use disorder (AUD), heavy or frequent alcohol drinking and subsequent abuse can cause problems such as emotional distress or physical harm. In many cases, an addict may need a combination of medications, behavioral therapy and support to recover.

The AUD Treatment Market

The U.S. alcohol and substance addiction treatment industry is significant, with more than 14,000 treatment facilities across the country generating more than $35 billion in revenue, even with sometimes low efficacy rates.

To complement the work of these facilities, companies like Abbott Laboratories ABT, SOBR Safe Inc. SOBR and Honeywell International Inc. HON are developing technologies to help companies and law enforcement check addiction and abuse.

Another company, Awakn Life Sciences Corp. AWKNF also seems to be making strides in its quest to provide reliable therapies for addictions.

Awakn is a revenue-generating biotechnology company researching, developing and commercializing therapeutics to treat substance and behavioral addictions. 

Awakn says it has a near-term focus on AUD, a condition affecting 400 million people globally for which the current standard of care is inadequate.

The company reports that its goal is to provide effective therapeutics to addiction sufferers in desperate need while focusing on commercializing its research and development (R&D) pipeline across multiple channels.

Entering The U.S. Market

As it expands into new markets, the predominantly UK-based Toronto-based company recently announced it started commercial operations in the U.S.

Awakn said it signed a licensing partnership agreement with Revitalist Lifestyle and Wellness Ltd. RVLWF, one of the largest publicly listed U.S.-based ketamine wellness clinic chains.

The agreement will enable Revitalist to treat clients with Awakn’s proprietary ketamine-assisted therapy for the treatment of AUD.

Awakn’s proprietary treatment was developed and validated in a Phase II a/b trial. The trial results were published in January 2022 in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

The trial delivered 86% abstinence over six months post-treatment versus 2% pretrial. The current standard of care has an approximate 25% abstinence rate over the same timeframe.

Under the terms of the licensing agreement, Awakn will provide access to its proprietary therapeutics and training to Revitalist practitioners, and in return, Revitalist will pay Awakn an annual fee and a revenue share per treatment.

Awakn aims to improve the performance of this industry by providing clinic operators with access to an efficient and effective treatment option under license.

“Our partnership agreement with Revitalist adds an additional revenue stream for Awakn in our licensing partnerships’ business and, importantly, brings us into a new and key territory — the United States,” Awakn CEO Anthony Tennyson said.

He believes it positions Awakn to be a biotech company with commercialization activity across multiple revenue streams and geographic territories.

“We look forward to onboarding more partners in the coming months and providing hope to addiction sufferers for whom current treatments are just not working,” Tennyson said.

Revitalist CEO Kathryn Walker said, “The current standard of care for AUD — and most addiction disorders — is insufficient, leaving many people, as well as their loved ones, suffering.

“Now, for the first time in the United States, these individuals are able to access this promising treatment to help them remain in remission of their addictive behaviors.”

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