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The Korea Herald
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THE INVESTOR
March 29, 2024

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Medytox takes shot at BTX rivals ahead of US entry

  • PUBLISHED :November 01, 2016 - 14:02
  • UPDATED :November 09, 2016 - 11:44
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[THE INVESTOR] Medytox, South Korea’s largest maker of botulinum toxin is taking shots at its smaller domestic rivals as it prepares to enter the lucrative US market.

Medytox, which launched its Botox replica for the first time in Korea, challenged second-tier firms Hugel and Daewoong Pharmaceutical in early October to identify the details of the strain they used to manufacture the drug. 




“The reputation of BTX products produced by South Korean companies have suffered due to manufacturers like Hugel and Daewoong that are refusing to address exactly how they obtained their BTX strains,” Medytox said in a statement on Oct.14. “We suggest these firms to offer more detailed explanations.”

Hugel and Daewoong have so far rejected Medytox’s suggestions, claiming their anti-wrinkle fighting products have been proven for safety and efficiency through clinical trials, and that they have got approval from health authorities.

The recent controversy is proving to be detrimental for all three firms, as their share price is tanking. Hugel’s share prices fell 22.8 percent from Oct.17-27.

While clarifying the BTX sources may be beneficial for public health, some industry watchers say Medytox seems to be engaging in unnecessary mudslinging, since the firm is the last among the three firms to enter the US market said to be worth around US$900 million -- accounting for nearly half of worldwide BTX sales.

Medytox is dominant in the Korean facial injectable arena, but Daewoong and Hugel are making notably faster progress in global clinical trials.

In 2018, Daewoong’s Botox product will be the first from Korea to hit the US pharmacy shelves. The firm has completed its phase 3 clinical trials and is preparing to file for US Food and Drug Administration approval by early 2017 for a BTX product named Nabota.

Hugel is expected to follow, with Medytox lagging behind.

Hugel and Daewoong have vowed to push ahead with their global sales plans regardless of the controversy.

“We will not respond to this meaningless controversy,” Daewoong Pharmaceutical said.

Hugel went as far as to state that it would sue Medytox for defamation should the firm continue to spread “false rumors”.

The controversy over BTX strains first emerged on Sept. 29 when Rep. Ki Dong-min of the Democratic Party criticized a government loophole in managing BTX sources, accusing firms of attaining strains from unhealthy sources.

The lawmaker cited data provided by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention alleging that Hugel discovered the strain of BTX from rotten canned food, while Daewoong’s came from soil. The firms are not obligated to state such details to government authorities.

Officials at the CDCP and the Ministry of Health and Welfare told The Investor they do not plan to further investigate the case as there have been no noted side effects from the drugs sold by Daewoong and Hugel.

South Korea is one of the four countries along with the US, Japan and China that has commercialized its own BTX brands. Currently, there are seven global BTX distributors including Medytox, Daewoong and Hugel.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)

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