Actelion launches Valchlor

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Actelion has launched a topical gel used to treat a kind of skin cancer, the company said.

Actelion announced the launch of Valchlor (mechlorethamine), which the Food and Drug Administration approved in August for treating stage 1A and 1B mycosis fungoides-type cutaneous T-cell lymphoma in patient who have received skin-directed therapy before. Actelion acquired rights to the drug when it merged with Ceptaris Therapeutics. Accredo Specialty Pharmacy distributes the drug in the United States.

"The availability of Valchlor is exciting news for patients and the treatment community," Stanford University School of Medicine professor and director of the school's Multidisciplinary Cutaneous Lymphoma Clinic Youn Kim said in a statement on behalf of Actelion. "Physicians now have the option to treat appropriate MF-CTCL patients with the first formulation of topical mechlorethamine that is FDA-approved based on rigorous clinical evidence to support its use."