VANCOUVER, May 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANPI, TSX: ANP), a specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company, today announced that it has entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with B. Braun for its proprietary Quill(TM) SRS product line in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France. The term of the distribution agreement will be for five years.
According to The Royal College of Surgeons of England, there are approximately 4.2 million surgical operations carried out every year in England alone. There are more than 18,000 surgeons currently practicing in England in approximately 2,900 operating theaters. According to market research, in France there are over 5 million surgical procedures performed annually by more than 17,000 surgeons in excess of 3,300 hospital facilities.
“We are very excited and proud to have one of the leading companies in wound closure partner with Angiotech to facilitate the continued acceptance of Quill(TM) SRS in these critical European countries,” said Dr. William Hunter, President and CEO of Angiotech. “Having a leading company such as B. Braun, with its long legacy of innovation and technology leadership, join us as one of our European partners further validates Quill(TM) SRS’s market potential as a transformational technology in the surgical market.”
“We are very much looking forward to including the Quill(TM) SRS knotless suturing system in our comprehensive Closure Technologies portfolio and start redefining wound closure. Such innovative barbed monofilament sutures fit very well with our global monofilament sutures campaign, and we are convinced that it will be a major breakthrough for our organization in these markets,” said Mr. Miguel Pablo, Vice President, Marketing, Sales & Regulatory Affairs for the Closure Technologies Unit in the B. Braun Group. “With this agreement, we proudly strengthen our strategic partnership with Angiotech, a leading company in innovative treatment solutions,” added Mr. Pablo.
B. Braun is one of the world’s leading health care suppliers with over (euro)4 billion in revenue in 2009 and over 39,000 employees worldwide. Its Aesculap division focuses on products and services for core processes in surgery. Aesculap’s product portfolio includes, among other items, surgical instruments for open or minimally invasive approaches, implants (including for orthopedics, neurosurgery and spinal surgery), surgical sutures, sterile containers, storage, motor and navigation systems, and products for cardiology.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release that are not based on historical fact, including without limitation statements containing the words “believes,” “may,” “plans,” “will,” “estimates,” “continues,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “expects” and similar expressions, constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and constitute “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. All such statements are made pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of applicable securities legislation. Forward- looking statements may involve, but are not limited to, comments with respect to our objectives and priorities for the remainder of 2010 and beyond, our strategies or future actions, our targets, expectations for our financial condition and the results of, or outlook for, our operations, research and development and product and drug development. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, events or developments to be materially different from any future results, events or developments expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Many such known risks, uncertainties and other factors are taken into account as part of our assumptions underlying these forward-looking statements and include, among others, the following: general economic and business conditions in the United States, Canada and the other regions in which we operate; market demand; technological changes that could impact our existing products or our ability to develop and commercialize future products; competition; existing governmental legislation and regulations and changes in, or the failure to comply with, governmental legislation and regulations; availability of financial reimbursement coverage from governmental and third-party payers for products and related treatments; adverse results or unexpected delays in pre-clinical and clinical product development processes; adverse findings related to the safety and/or efficacy of our products or products sold by our partners; decisions, and the timing of decisions, made by health regulatory agencies regarding approval of our technology and products; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development, to expand manufacturing and commercialization activities; and any other factors that may affect our performance. In addition, our business is subject to certain operating risks that may cause any results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release to differ materially from our actual results. These operating risks include: our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; our ability to successfully complete pre-clinical and clinical development of our products; changes in our business strategy or development plans; our failure to obtain patent protection for discoveries; loss of patent protection resulting from third-party challenges to our patents; commercialization limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; our ability to obtain rights to technology from licensors; liability for patent claims and other claims asserted against us; our ability to obtain and enforce timely patent and other intellectual property protection for our technology and products; the ability to enter into, and to maintain, corporate alliances relating to the development and commercialization of our technology and products; market acceptance of our technology and products; our ability to successfully manufacture, market and sell our products; the availability of capital to finance our activities; our ability to restructure and to service our debt obligations; and any other factors referenced in our other filings with the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authorities or the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). For a more thorough discussion of the risks associated with our business, see the “Risk Factors” section in our annual report for the year ended December 31, 2009 filed with the SEC on Form 10-K.
Given these uncertainties, assumptions and risk factors, investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, we disclaim any obligation to update any such factors or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect future results, events or developments.
(C)2010 Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
About the Quill(TM) Self-Retaining System (SRS)
Quill(TM) SRS represents a revolutionary technology in wound closure made possible by bidirectional fixation within the wound. Its patented design allows the surgeon to begin closure at the midpoint of the wound and suture in two directions from the midpoint. Barbs within the Quill(TM) SRS distribute tension across the wound and eliminate the need for knots.
About Angiotech Pharmaceuticals
Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a global specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company. Angiotech discovers, develops and markets innovative treatment solutions for diseases or complications associated with medical device implants, surgical interventions and acute injury. To find out more about Angiotech (NASDAQ: ANPI, TSX: ANP), please visit our website at www.angiotech.com.
