Valchlor Gel for Mycosis Fungoides Now Available in the U.S.

Actelion has announced that Valchlor (mechlorethamine), the first and only FDA-approved topical formulation of mechlorethamine, is now available for patients in the United States.

Valchlor is a gel applied topically once a day. It is an alkylating drug indicated to treat patients with stage IA and IB mycosis fungoides-type cutaneous T-cell lymphoma who have received prior skin-directed therapy.

FDA-approved treatment

In a statement, Youn H. Kim, M.D., Joanne and Peter Haas Jr. professor for cutaneous lymphoma research, professor of dermatology, and director, Multidisciplinary Cutaneous Lymphoma Clinic, Stanford University School of Medicine, said:

The availability of Valchlor is exciting news for patients and the treatment community. 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.

Mycosis fungoides is the most common type of cutaneous T-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, with about 20,000 new diagnoses in the U.S. annually.

Actelion has also established Valchlor Support(TM), an assistance program to help eligible patients successfully start and remain on Valchlor therapy. The program is run by Accredo Specialty Pharmacy (www.accredo.com) and includes reimbursement and financial support for eligible patients, as well as disease and product information.

For more information on the Valchlor Support program, patients can call 1-855-4-VALCHLOR (1-855-482-5245) between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time, or visit www.valchlor.com.

Source: MarketWatch