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 "Pets are your loved ones, pets should be your family, pets are not
something you keep on a chain in the backyard," the intensive-care
nurse from Somers, Connecticut, said.
Lescault, 43, who enrolled Moose in a clinical trial of an
experimental drug designed to help his immune system fight his
cancer, represents the type of pet lover that has spurred animal
health companies around the globe to invest in developing complex
new treatments previously reserved for humans.
Biotechnology, which produces medicines from living cells,
revolutionized the drug industry more than a quarter century ago
with breakthrough medicines at prices that now run as high as
hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
In recent years, the cost of genetic testing and biotech drug
production has fallen sharply, making biotechnology for pets
financially viable at much lower prices, industry experts said. For
a FACTBOX, click
Sector leader Zoetis <ZTS.N> and others say animal drug development
is faster, less expensive and more predictable than drugs for
people.
"It's not nearly as common for pivotal studies to fail in animal
health as it is in human medicine. Most of them are successful,"
said Cheryl London, professor in comparative oncology at Cummings
School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in Massachusetts.
Biotech drugs for pets, if proven safe and effective, would be a
boon to a $44 billion veterinary medicines market currently
dominated by vaccines, flea and tick repellents and anti-infectives.
A recent product launch has galvanized the industry.
Cytopoint for canine itch relief sold by Zoetis reached blockbuster
status by animal health standards in its second year on the market.
Launched in late 2016, Cytopoint generated 2018 sales of $129
million, and first-quarter 2019 sales jumped 65% from a year
earlier.
Produced from cloned genetically engineered hamster cells over at
least eight bio-processing steps, the monoclonal antibody is no less
complex than comparable therapeutic proteins used in human medicine.
But the cost to consumers is far less.
Like many biotech drugs, dose and cost is determined by weight.
Zoetis declined to disclose its prices. But an animal hospital in
Stamford, Connecticut, for example, charges $104 for a 40-pound (18
kg) dog. For much smaller dogs, a Cytopoint injection, which lasts
about four to eight weeks, costs about $35 to $50. To keep a large
dog from scratching itself raw could run $140 per shot.
The cost of a highly effective new anti-itch biotech drug to treat
severe atopic dermatitis in humans can run about $30,000 a year.
'TURNING POINT'
"Cytopoint was a turning point that has made it clear that (biotech
drugs) can be successful in this space," London said. "Now there are
an estimated five to ten companies developing antibodies for the
veterinary market."
That has created increased business for related services.
"It's a big challenge for us to keep up with the pace of demand
growth," said Klaus Hellmann, managing director at Munich-based
Klifovet AG, Europe's largest contractor for late-stage clinical
trials of veterinary drugs.
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While Cytopoint sparked investment interest in biotech treatments
for animals, drug development still comes with inherent risks and
uncertainty.
Aratana Therapeutics Inc's canine lymphoma drug, Blontress, was
launched in 2015, but later withdrawn after scientific data led the
company to determine it was unlikely to be a financial success.
Declining costs has mitigated some of the risk.
"Over the past several years, human health has been able to advance
the technology to improve efficiency of their cell production
systems," said Rob Polzer, head of global therapeutics research for
Zoetis.
Zoetis can repurpose and optimize existing procedures, mechanisms of
action and technologies, it said.
The company is seeking approval for a biotech medicine to treat
osteoarthritic pain in cats, with plans for a 2021 market launch and
a similar product for dogs thereafter.
Others have jumped on the bandwagon.
German start-up Adivo was spun out of biotech firm Morphosys <MORG.DE>
in March 2018 out of frustration by its founders that scientific
advances for humans were not translating into better treatment
options for their dogs.
It has since struck a global collaboration deal with Bayer's <BAYGn.DE>
animal health unit for its early-stage research platform for
animal-specific monoclonal antibodies - the backbone of
biotechnology.
"Over the last few years, the veterinary market has seen an
incredibly dynamic development," said Adivo co-founder Kathrin
Ladetzki-Baehs.
This could prove a lifesaver for Moose, the bulldog in the oncology
drug trial.
In early August, Lescault discovered a mass on Moose's throat, soon
followed by deteriorating health and a diagnosis of canine B-cell
lymphoma. Moose was given one to two months to live without
treatment or about a year with 25 weeks of punishing chemotherapy.
Lescault's local vet suggested the Tufts trial testing an
experimental protein that could help advance the current immuno-oncology
craze into the animal health arena.
Tufts declined to disclose the compound or the study's sponsor. But
more than three weeks into the trial, Moose's cough and labored
breathing has disappeared and he is back to his playful and
boisterous self, Lescault said.
While treatment in a clinical trial is free, Lescault said she would
not hesitate to pay thousands of dollars for a safe and effective
drug to save Moose. "I wouldn't blink an eye," she said.
That is exactly what drug companies are banking on.
(Additional reporting by Katherine Taylor in Boston; editing by Bill
Berkrot)
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