XERS 2021 Annual Report

Even if our product candidates receive marketing approval, if we or others later identify undesirable or unacceptable side effects caused by such products: < regulatory authorities may require the addition of labeling statements, including “black box” warnings, contraindications or dissemination of field alerts to physicians and pharmacies; < we may be required to change instructions regarding the way the product is administered, conduct additional clinical trials or change the labeling of the product; < we may be subject to limitations on how we may promote the product; < sales of the product may decrease significantly; < regulatory authorities may require us to take our approved product off the market; < we may be subject to litigation or products liability claims; and < our reputation may suffer. Any of these events could also prevent us from achieving or maintaining market acceptance of the affected product or could substantially increase commercialization costs and expenses, which in turn could delay or prevent us from generating significant revenues from the sale of our products. We have received orphan drug designation for Keveyis, Recorlev and certain of our product candidates with respect to certain indications and may pursue such designation for others, but we may be unable to obtain such designation or to maintain the benefits associated with orphan drug status, including market exclusivity, even if that designation is granted. We have received orphan drug designation from the FDA for four indications for our product candidates, which are our ready-to-use glucagon for PBH and Congenital Hyperinsulinism ("CHI") and our ready-to-use diazepam for acute repetitive seizures and Dravet syndrome. We have also received orphan drug designation from the EMA for our ready-to-use glucagon for CHI and Noninsulinoma Pancreatogenous Hypoglycaemia Syndrome ("NIPHS") which includes patients with PBH. We may pursue such designation for others in specific orphan indications in which there is an unmet medical need. We will continue to rely on orphan drug exclusivity in the marketing and sales of Keveyis until it expires on August 7, 2022 and intend to rely on orphan drug exclusivity and, if granted, new chemical entity (“NCE”) exclusivity in the marketing and sale of Recorlev. Under the Orphan Drug Act of 1983, the FDA may designate a product candidate as an orphan drug if it is intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally defined as having a patient population of fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or a patient population greater than 200,000 in the United States where there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing the drug will be recovered from sales in the United States. Orphan drug designation entitles a party to financial incentives such as opportunities for grant funding towards clinical trial costs, tax advantages, and user-fee waivers. After the FDA grants orphan drug designation, the generic identity of the drug and its potential orphan use are disclosed publicly by the FDA. Orphan drug designation does not convey any advantage in, or shorten the duration of, the regulatory review and approval process. Although we may seek orphan drug designation for certain additional indications, we may never receive such designation. Moreover, obtaining orphan drug designation for one indication does not mean we will be able to obtain such designation for another indication. If a product that has orphan drug designation subsequently receives the first FDA approval for a particular active ingredient for the disease for which it has such designation, the product is entitled to orphan drug exclusivity. Orphan drug exclusivity means that the FDA may not approve any other applications, including an NDA, to market the same drug for the same indication for seven years, except in limited circumstances such as if the FDA finds that the holder of the orphan drug exclusivity has not shown that it can assure the availability of sufficient quantities of the orphan drug to meet the needs of patients with the disease or condition for which the drug was designated. Similarly, the FDA can subsequently approve a drug with the same active moiety for the same condition during the exclusivity period if the FDA concludes that the later drug is clinically superior, meaning the later drug is safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care. In assessing whether we can demonstrate that our drug provides a “major contribution to patient care” over and above the currently approved drugs, which is evaluated by the FDA on a case-by-case basis, there is no one objective standard and the FDA may, in appropriate circumstances, consider such factors as convenience of treatment location, duration of treatment, patient comfort, reduced treatment burden, advances in ease and comfort of drug administration, longer periods between doses, and potential for self-administration. However, such a demonstration to overcome the seven-year market exclusivity may be difficult to establish with limited precedents and there can be no assurance that we will be successful in these efforts. Even with respect to the indications for which we have received orphan designation, we may not be the first to obtain marketing approval for any particular orphan indication due to the uncertainties associated with developing pharmaceutical products, and thus approval of our product candidates could be blocked for seven years if another company previously obtained approval and orphan drug exclusivity for the same drug and same condition. If we do obtain exclusive marketing rights in the United States, they may be limited if we seek approval for an indication broader than the orphan designated indication and may be lost if the FDA later determines that the request for designation was materially defective or if we are unable to assure sufficient quantities of the product to meet the needs of the relevant patients. Further, exclusivity may not effectively protect the product from competition because different drugs with different active moieties can be approved for the same condition, the same drugs can be approved for different indications and might then be used off-label in our approved indication, and different drugs for the same condition may already be approved and commercially available. 53

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTIzOTM0