Pressure on Wilson Totten to lift ProStrakan US sales

PROSTRAKAN chief executive Wilson Totten will be under pressure this week to outline how he can reinvigorate its first US product after a disappointing first year of sales.

The Galashiels-based pharmaceutical firm is expected to report revenues of around 78million for 2009 on Thursday, a rise of nearly 40 per cent, boosted by the launch of Sancuso in the US.

However, sales of the drug, a skin patch which alleviates nausea experienced by many patients undergoing chemotherapy, have been lower than expected since it went on sale in late 2008.

Charles Stanley analyst Franc Gregori said last week that the initial pick-up of Sancuso suggested sales could reach 14.6m last year. However, a drop-off in prescriptions during 2009 means it is expected to contribute less than 8m.

Shares in ProStrakan, which hit an all-time high of 155p in September, fell below 100p last week after analysts trimmed forecasts.

The firm has already changed the pricing structure of Sancuso and has also said it would review its marketing in a bid to restore sales, with results of the review expected this week.

Close attention will also be paid to the progress of Abstral, a pill designed to overcome the intense pain experienced by many cancer sufferers.

Launched across Europe in 2009, sales have been better than analysts had expected.

The drug is being reviewed by the US Food & Drug Administration and, if approved, some analysts believe its potential could be greater than Sancuso.

ProStrakan is expected to report a pre-tax loss of 15m-16m for 2009 on Thursday, down from 25.2m in 2008.