Luye Pharma and AstraZeneca Strengthen Strategic Collaboration to Advance Cardiovascular and Oncology Therapies
Signing Ceremony
Left: Jiang Hua, Vice President of Luye Pharma Group
Right: Chen Bing, Vice President of Strategic Cooperation and Business Development at AstraZeneca China
December 28, 2020, Shanghai, China — Luye Pharma Group and AstraZeneca jointly signed a strategic cooperation memorandum. Both parties will actively explore in-depth collaboration in the fields of cardiovascular diseases and oncology, focusing on Luye Pharma’s natural medicine Xuezhikang in the cardiovascular sector.®Capsules and Lipusu, an Innovative Formulation in the Oncology Field®as well as LY01008, a bevacizumab injection for oncology developed by Shandong Boan Biotechnology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Luye Pharma Group. The aim is to integrate the complementary strengths of both parties in market coverage, channel expansion, medical research, and international cooperation, thereby accelerating the availability of high-quality innovative medicines to more patients in China and around the world.
Xuezhikang®, Lipusu®, Bevacizumab Injection (LY01008) is a core proprietary product/investigational product independently developed by Luye Pharma in the fields of cardiovascular disease and oncology. Among them, Xuezhikang®It is the only natural lipid-regulating drug in China that has demonstrated benefits in hard clinical endpoints, and it has completed Phase II clinical studies approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Lipusu®It is the first commercialized liposomal paclitaxel formulation and currently the only liposomal paclitaxel formulation marketed worldwide, indicated for the treatment of breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and ovarian cancer. Bevacizumab injection (LY01008) is indicated for the treatment of advanced, metastatic, or recurrent NSCLC and metastatic colorectal cancer; a marketing application for this investigational product was submitted in China in April 2020.
Under the Strategic Cooperation Memorandum, Luye Pharma and AstraZeneca will actively explore future directions for collaboration based on their existing partnership, aiming to further enhance both the depth and breadth of their cooperation. In the cardiovascular field, building upon their current global commercialization partnership, the two parties will discuss more innovative promotional models centered around internet healthcare and online channel expansion, to further promote Xuezhikang.®Patient accessibility to capsule-based medications. In the field of oncology, both parties will explore how to leverage their respective strengths to further advance Lipusu.®Coverage across broad regions and niche markets will be expanded, and communication will be strengthened regarding collaborative opportunities for subsequent clinical academic research on this product. Furthermore, both parties will engage in in-depth discussions on conducting clinical combination therapy studies between Luye Pharma’s other major oncology investigational product, LY01008, and AstraZeneca’s anticancer agents, while actively exploring collaboration opportunities for LY01008 in major international emerging markets outside China.
“Renewing our partnership with AstraZeneca marks a further deepening of our collaborative relationship. With years of extensive expertise in the fields of cardiovascular and oncology therapeutics, along with broad innovative resources and a global network, we look forward to building a closer and mutually beneficial partnership with AstraZeneca in these two key disease areas. By leveraging the combined resources and strengths of both companies, we aim to help more patients gain timely access to effective treatments,” said Mr. Yang Rongbing, President of Luye Pharma Group.
“Having been rooted in China for over two decades, AstraZeneca has always adhered to the philosophy of ‘patient-centricity,’ focusing on the disease areas with the most urgent needs in China and providing patients with high-quality innovative pharmaceutical resources. We look forward to more opportunities for collaboration with Luye Pharma to jointly deliver a greater number of better innovative healthcare solutions to patients,” said Mr. Wang Lei, Executive Vice President of AstraZeneca, President of International Business and China. “AstraZeneca has always been committed to collaborating with local Chinese enterprises to jointly promote the innovative development of China’s health industry and benefit more patients.”
Xuezhikang® Capsules are a purely natural lipid-regulating medication produced by fermenting specially prepared red yeast rice using modern techniques. Xuezhikang® Capsules help regulate abnormal blood lipid levels by reducing total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), while increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). They inhibit the formation of atherosclerotic plaques, protect vascular endothelial cells, and prevent lipid accumulation in the liver. The product has been on the market for over 20 years. Large-scale clinical evidence-based medical studies, including the China Coronary Secondary Prevention Study (CCSPS), have confirmed that Xuezhikang® can inhibit cholesterol synthesis and significantly reduce all-cause mortality, coronary heart disease-specific mortality, and the incidence of cardiovascular events in patients with coronary heart disease, with few adverse reactions.
Lipusu® is a nano-formulation of paclitaxel, representing the first commercialized liposomal paclitaxel preparation and currently the only liposomal paclitaxel product marketed globally. It is indicated for the treatment of breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and ovarian cancer. The drug’s unique tumor and lymph node targeting capabilities, combined with its prolonged half-life, enable enhanced antitumor efficacy while offering improved safety and tolerability. Over the 16 years since its launch, Lipusu® has been administered to more than 2 million patients. Its favorable efficacy and safety profile have gained widespread recognition through long-term clinical application, leading to explicit recommendations in multiple authoritative guidelines and consensus statements. According to the latest published clinical study results, Lipusu® combined with cisplatin demonstrated comparable efficacy to gemcitabine combined with cisplatin as first-line treatment for advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer, with superior safety and patient compliance.
Bevacizumab Injection (LY01008) is indicated for the treatment of advanced, metastatic, or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer and metastatic colorectal cancer. The marketing authorization application for this product was accepted by the Center for Drug Evaluation of the National Medical Products Administration of China in April 2020.
Luye Pharma Group is an international pharmaceutical company dedicated to the research and development, manufacturing, and sales of innovative drugs. Luye Pharma has more than 30 drug candidates in development in China and over 10 overseas, with multiple innovative formulations and new drugs in the fields of central nervous system (CNS) and oncology undergoing registration and clinical studies in European and American markets. The company operates eight major production bases worldwide, with more than 30 production lines, and has established a GMP quality management and control system aligned with international standards. Luye Pharma currently has more than 30 marketed products covering therapeutic areas including oncology, CNS, cardiovascular, digestive, and metabolic diseases. Its business extends to more than 80 countries and regions globally, including major pharmaceutical markets such as China, the United States, Europe, and Japan, as well as rapidly growing emerging markets.
AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development, manufacturing, and marketing of prescription medicines, with a particular emphasis on three core therapeutic areas: oncology, respiratory, and cardiovascular, renal, and metabolism. AstraZeneca operates in more than 100 countries, and its innovative medicines benefit millions of patients worldwide. For more information, please visit www.astrazeneca.com.