A Salt Lake maker of drug-delivery technology has joined with distribution giant Proctor & Gamble Co. to internationally market a new estrogen adhesive patch.
"This is a form of hormone-replacement therapy," said Alan Behunin, manager of investor relations for TheraTech Inc., which operates a 240-employee factory in Research Park.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the patch Friday, and Behunin said the company expects to have it on drugstore shelves before the end of the first quarter of 1997.
The product, to be marketed as "Alora," offers "a new option in treating menopausal symptoms," said a joint news release.
Behunin said it offers an alternative to estrogen tablets taken by postmenopausal women. The patch puts estrogen into the bloodstream via the skin. It is changed every three or four days, offering "a twice-weekly dosage," said Behunin.
"There's an enormous market for this," he said, estimating that the worldwide market for hormone replacement therapy exceeds $2 billion "and estrogen is a significant portion of that."
The Alora patch "looks like a transparent Band-Aid," said Behunin. It can be worn on the abdomen, hip or buttocks.
"The thing we're excited about is that Proctor & Gamble is such a strong marketing organization," he said, noting the company markets both prescription and over-the-counter drugs in 60 countries.
TheraTec, which is traded on NASDAQ, closed Friday at $12.50 a share. Its 52-week low was $8.37, but the stock has traded for as much as $16.87 within the last year.
The company's 63,000-square-foot plant was completed in 1984 and has been outfitted with some $20 million in plant equipment. Its only other product released to date was a similar androgen-replacement therapy, though Behunin said the company has between 15 and 20 other drug-delivery systems in development.