Arrangement covers UroCor ProstaSeed(TM) sources for implants in
brachytherapy, a treatment option with potential application in 60 percent of
the 200,000 new cases of prostate cancer diagnosed in the U.S. annually
OKLAHOMA CITY and ST. LOUIS, Sept. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- UroCor, Inc.,
(Nasdaq: UCOR), a leading disease management company in urology, and
Mallinckrodt Inc., (NYSE: MKG), a global manufacturer and marketer of
specialty healthcare products, said today Mallinckrodt will sell and
distribute UroCor's new radiation treatment for prostate cancer through
Mallinckrodt's 35 nuclear medicine pharmacies and more than 80 independent
pharmacies. Mallinckrodt also will add the product to its group-purchasing
contracts with hospital groups such as Premier.
The agreement will broaden Mallinckrodt's product offering in nuclear
medicine while providing UroCor with an instant presence in the radiation
oncology market as well as supplementing its traditional base in specialized
testing through total disease management. The product, ProstaSeed I-125
radioactive sources, has received 510(k) clearance to market from the U.S.
Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and is awaiting final approval from the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). UroCor expects product launch to occur
in 1999 following regulatory clearance by the NRC when the Mallinckrodt
agreement will also become effective.
ProstaSeed sources are small, radioactive pellets which are implanted in a
patient's prostate under ultrasound guidance to destroy the tumor. This
treatment, called brachytherapy, is increasingly selected by early stage
prostate cancer patients because it does not dictate removal of the organ,
which can result in side effects such as impotence and incontinence.
Approximately 200,000 new cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed in the U.S.
each year, and about 60 percent of these are potentially treatable by
brachytherapy. Seeds for a single procedure typically cost about $4,000, and
the current U.S. market for all such seed implants is approximately
$150 million annually.
"We are extremely enthusiastic about the ProstaSeed sales and distribution
agreement with Mallinckrodt," said William A. Hagstrom, Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of UroCor. "This strategic plan combines UroCor's ability
to differentiate its radiation 'seeds' for implant through our advanced
knowledge of prostate cancer and our unique diagnostic and prognostic services
with Mallinckrodt's access to the hospital market and its industry leadership
in radiopharmaceuticals."
"The arrangement is another milestone in UroCor's drive to expand its
therapeutic portfolio of products and services for urologic diseases,"
Hagstrom continued, "and our target markets are principally urology and
radiation oncology medical specialties. This builds on our expanding ability
to sell pharmaceutical products for important urologic diseases."
Under the agreement, UroCor will have a dedicated sales force to call on
radiation oncologists and medical physicists. Mallinckrodt will also have
direct sales and will include ProstaSeed in its hospital group purchasing
agreements. There will be minimum annual purchase levels Mallinckrodt must
meet, and sales revenues will be divided between the two firms according to an
agreed-upon formula.
"This is a very exciting opportunity for us," said C. Ray Holman,
Mallinckrodt's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Partnering with UroCor,
a firm widely recognized for its expertise in the management of urology
diseases such as prostate cancer, enables Mallinckrodt to leverage our
strength in the hospital markets and in radiopharmaceuticals. It also
provides the opportunity to participate in the advancement of medical
technology to provide better healthcare for patients and greater value for
physicians and other medical professionals."
"This agreement helps UroCor better leverage our own distribution channel
by allowing us to focus our marketing efforts on differentiating the product
offering, providing unique service-based capabilities, and developing
complementary products," said Karl K. Nigg, UroCor Vice President and General
Manager of its therapeutics unit.
Bradley J. Fercho, President of Mallinckrodt's Imaging Group, said, "This
agreement is another step in the growth initiative we are pursuing in our
Imaging business. The timing for this announcement could not be better, since
our entire U.S. medical sales organization is together this week for our
national sales meeting. There appears to be tremendous excitement about this
opportunity to take this product to our customers, and I'm confident our sales
professionals will position ProstaSeed for early and strong marketing
success."
About UroCor
UroCor markets a comprehensive range of integrated products and services
to assist in detecting, diagnosing, treating, and managing prostate cancer,
kidney stones, and other complex urologic disorders directly to urologists and
managed care organizations. The company's primary focus is helping urologists
improve patient care and outcomes while reducing total costs of managing these
diseases. UroCor presently serves more than one third of the office-based
urologists in the United States. UroCor's website is: http://www.urocor.com or
visit the UroCor page on FRB's website at: http://www.frbinc.com.
About Mallinckrodt
Mallinckrodt, Inc., is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty
healthcare products. Based in St. Louis, Mo., the company has three
healthcare product groups -- Respiratory, Imaging and Pharmaceuticals. The
company operates in more than 100 countries and had fiscal 1999 net sales of
$2.6 billion.
Mallinckrodt is a world leader in nuclear medicine and distributes its
radiopharmaceutical product lines through Diagnostic Imaging Services, its
system of nuclear pharmacies in the United States. The Mallinckrodt website
address is: http://www.mallinckrodt.com .
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this news release that are not strictly historical,
including statements as to plans, objectives, and future financial
performance, are "forward-looking" statements that are made pursuant to the
safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Although both UroCor and Mallinckrodt believes that the expectations
reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no
assurance that the expectations will prove to be correct. Factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from each company's expectations
include, among others, competition within the healthcare and medical services
industries; the effect of government regulation and reimbursement policies on
the healthcare market and on each Company, including the possibility of being
deemed not in compliance with federal and state regulatory requirements;
delays in FDA or other regulatory agency approval of pending therapeutic
products; each Company's access to and the market's acceptance of new
products; each Company's ability to market and distribute therapeutic products
profitably; each Company's ability to expand contractual relationships with
managed care organizations; as well as the risks, uncertainties, and other
factors described from time to time in each Company's periodic filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE Mallinckrodt Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.mallinckrodt.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/440950.html or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 440950
CONTACT:
Media, Barbara Abbett, 314-654-5230 or
Communications@mkg.com, or Investors, Barbara Gould, 314-654-3190
or Invest@mkg.com, both of Mallinckrodt Inc.; or Media, Karl K.
Nigg, 405-290-4000, or Investors, Peggy Howard, 405-290-4000,
both of UroCor; or General, Paul Scheeler, 312-640-6742, or
Media, Joyce Hanson, 312-640-6756, both of FRB-BSMG
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