Israel-based biopharma firm MediWound has announced that its strategic partner, Kaken Pharmaceutical has launched NexoBrid in Japan for the treatment of deep partial thickness and full thickness burns in adults and paediatric patients. Kaken Pharmaceutical, a top ranked Japanese pharmaceutical company, has the exclusive marketing and distribution rights for NexoBrid in Japan.

NexoBrid is indicated for the removal of eschar in deep partial and full thickness thermal burns. The current standard of care is primarily based on non-selective, expensive, and potentially disfiguring surgical excisions. NexoBrid offers burn specialists with an alternative of a single 4-hour topical treatment, after which the dissolved eschar is removed, leaving a clean wound bed ready for healing.

“As one of the top healthcare markets worldwide, Japan holds special strategic importance. Over 6,000 patients are treated for severe burns in Japan every year, with a majority of these patients undergoing eschar removal as a critical first step. NexoBrid can now be a non-surgical treatment option for these patients,” stated Ofer Gonen, Chief Executive Officer of MediWound.

NexoBrid (concentrate of proteolytic enzymes enriched in bromelain) is a topically administered biological product that enzymatically removes nonviable burn tissue, or eschar, in patients with deep partial and full-thickness thermal burns within four hours of application without harming viable tissue. NexoBrid is approved in over 40 countries, including in the United States and in the European Union where it has been designated as an orphan biologic drug.