Daewoong Pharmaceutical said Wednesday that the company would speed up the entry into the Chinese market with its botulinum product, Nabota while releasing the topline results of its phase 3 clinical trials conducted in China.

In the trial, researchers administered the same dose of Nabota or control medication Botox on 473 patients with severe wrinkles between eyebrows and confirmed their wrinkle-improving effects for 16 weeks with the interval of four weeks.

Daewoong Pharmaceutical aims to enter the Chinese market with its botulinum product, Nabota.
Daewoong Pharmaceutical aims to enter the Chinese market with its botulinum product, Nabota.

In the main evaluation variable of improving wrinkles between eyebrows, the Nabota group showed a 92.2 percent effect compared with the control medication’s 86.8 percent in the fourth week, proving non-inferiority. The phase 3 clinical trial was conducted under the strict guidelines of China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs, which estimated China’s botulinum toxin market at $672 million in 2018, expected it to grow to $1.55 billion in  2025. With its massive population, continuous economic growth, and high interest in aesthetics, China will likely emerge as a major market that shows rapid growth in the next decade.

“The Chinese market is smaller than the U.S. market but has an explosive growth potential, as only 1 percent of Chinese people have used botulinum toxin products,” said Park Sung-soo, head of Daewoong’s Nabota business division. “We will speed up Nabota’s launch in China with a differentiated strategic business model and aim to take the top place in this sector in three years.”

Nabota is the only Asian botulinum toxin product that has won the approval of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration with the export name Jeuveau, according to Daewoong. It has won sales approvals in 55 countries, including the U.S., Europe, and Canada, and signed export contracts with about 80 countries. 

“By getting sales approval in China, following the U.S. and Europe, Daewoong seeks to achieve a ‘grand slam’ in the world’s three major toxin markets and solidify the reputation of K-bio in the global market,” a company official said.

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