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| |  Chlorofluorocarbon-Free Beclomethasone Inhaler Available In Japan For Asthmatics MIAMI, FL -- June 9, 2000 -- Following the recent launch of its chlorofluorocarbons (CFC)-free beclomethasone product in France, IVAX Corporation announced that the product has now been approved in Japan. Beclomethasone, an anti-asthmatic drug, will be available in metered dose aerosol inhalers containing 50 mcg and 100 mcg of the drug, together with a propellant that does not contain any of the CFCs thought to cause thinning of the earth's ozone layer. The product is expected to be launched later this year by IVAX' partner in Japan, Taisho Pharmaceuticals. Taisho is an important Japanese pharmaceutical company that will add the new IVAX product to its growing franchise in the respiratory field. It recently announced a licensing transaction under which it will obtain rights to a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor for asthma from Millennium Pharmaceuticals, and it has also entered into an agreement with EpiGenesis Inc. concerning a novel compound for the treatment of respiratory disease. The beclomethasone market in Japan is approximately 14 billion yen ($132 million) per year and is dominated by Glaxo Wellcome's and Schering Plough's beclomethasone products, both of which are still available only in formulations containing CFC's. Steroids such as beclomethasone are increasingly used in Japan to prevent asthmatic episodes, and sales of these products have nearly doubled in the last five years, and have significant further growth potential. IVAX has now received approval for its CFC-free beclomethasone in seven countries, with other approvals expected during the remainder of 2000. Related Link: IVAX Corporation.
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