Bayer Healthcare manufactures Xofigo, its targeted agent for fighting prostate cancer that has spread to the bone, at a plant in Norway. But as soon as it got approval for the radiology treatment in May 2013, it started laying the groundwork for a manufacturing facility in North America. Now it says Cardinal Health, which exclusively distributes the product in the U.S. and Canada, will build one.
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The companies said late last week that as part of a 15-year contract manufacturing agreement, Cardinal will erect a 64,000-square-foot facility in Indianapolis that will be used only for manufacturing Xofigo. It will be built near its Indianapolis radiopharmacy, one of the two U.S. locations authorized to distribute Xofigo. Most of the product made there will be for the U.S. and Canadian markets, the companies said in an announcement.
The facility is set to be completed in 2017 and have about 85 employees. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and Cardinal did not say how much it will invest in the facility. Bayer's Norway plant will continue to manufacture Xofigo for the rest of the global market.
Bayer had so much confidence in Xofigo and other treatments being developed with partner Algeta that a year ago it agreed to pay $2.9 billion for the Norwegian company. Bayer expects Xofigo to be a blockbuster, with more than $1 billion in peak sales.
- here's the announcement
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