EXACT SCIENCES AND IRONWOOD PHARMACEUTICALS ENTER
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MADISON, Wis., & CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Exact Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ: EXAS) and Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: IRWD) announced today an agreement to co-promote Exact Sciences' Cologuard®, the first and only FDA-approved noninvasive stool DNA screening test for colorectal cancer. The agreement provides for the near-term expansion of Cologuard promotional efforts through the use of Ironwood's clinical sales specialists to more than double the number of physicians reached in the United States. The non-exclusive co-promotion agreement covers an initial one-year term with the opportunity for extension.
Ironwood's clinical sales specialists are expected to begin Cologuard promotional efforts in the second quarter of 2015, educating health care practitioners to whom they currently detail LINZESS® (linaclotide). LINZESS is the first and only approved therapy in a class of drugs that works differently to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) and chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC) in adults. The agreement augments Exact Sciences' 140 sales representatives with Ironwood's team of approximately 160 sales representatives.
"As we continue growing the Cologuard business and providing world-class service, this agreement offers an opportunity to broaden our reach among primary care physicians and gastroenterologists by engaging with them through sales calls and medical education," said Maneesh Arora, chief operating officer of Exact Sciences. "Ironwood's brand and the expertise of their proven sales force complement the early success of our sales team and strong physician interest in Cologuard."
"We at Ironwood are committed to innovation in gastrointestinal health, and we look forward to expanding our conversations with health care providers to include the importance of colon cancer screening," said Tom McCourt, chief commercial officer of Ironwood. "Primary care physicians and gastroenterologists place a high priority on cancer screening and diagnostics. We have built strong relationships with many of these physicians through our discussions about LINZESS for the treatment of adult IBS-C or CIC patients, and we believe introducing Cologuard to these physicians has the potential to enable millions of average risk patients unwilling to undergo a screening colonoscopy to be screened for colon cancer."
Under the terms of the deal, Ironwood will be compensated from the net sales generated from the physicians on whom they call. LINZESS will remain the first-position product for the Ironwood sales team. Exact Sciences will maintain responsibility for all other aspects of commercialization of Cologuard. The companies will also collaborate on medical education initiatives to support more in-depth understanding of Cologuard and the importance of colorectal cancer screening.
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