Ligand Partner Pfizer Announces European Medicines Agency Accepts Regulatory Submission for Bazedoxifene

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated LGND partner Pfizer PFE announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) accepted for review the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for bazedoxifene/conjugated estrogens (BZA/CE), a potential new medicine for postmenopausal women with a uterus for the treatment of estrogen deficiency symptoms and treatment of osteoporosis in women at risk of fracture. Pfizer expects a decision from the European Commission in 2013. BZA/CE pairs the selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) bazedoxifene with conjugated estrogens. BZA/CE has been studied in a Phase III clinical development program (Selective estrogens, Menopause And Response to Therapy [SMART] trials) which included approximately 7,500 postmenopausal women and assessed the safety and efficacy of BZA/CE for the treatment of estrogen deficiency symptoms, such as moderate-to-severe hot flashes and vulvar and vaginal atrophy, as well as postmenopausal osteoporosis. The most common adverse drug reactions observed in the SMART trials were abdominal pain, vaginal yeast infection and muscle spasms. “We are encouraged by the progress Pfizer is making with bazedoxifene/conjugated estrogens as it potentially offers another option for the many women experiencing symptoms of menopause who are not currently being treated,” said John Higgins, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. “Today's announcement continues to demonstrate the commercial potential of Ligand's product portfolio, which we believe is one of the strongest and deepest in the biotech industry.”