MedKoo product information:

 Afimoxifene

Description of afimoxifene: Afimoxifene (4-hydroxytamoxifen) is a selective estrogen receptor modulator which is the active metabolite of tamoxifen. Afimoxifene is a transdermal gel formulation and is being developed by Ascend Therapeutics, Inc. under the trademark TamoGel. Afimoxifene has completed a phase II clinical trial for the treatment of cyclical mastalgia. A study in France on 55 women showed that rubbing afimoxifene on the skin was as good as tamoxifen tablets at slowing breast cancer growth. A US trial will compare 6 weeks use before breast cancer surgery. Skin application can reduce systemic levels by a factor of nine and this is expected to reduce the unpleasant side-effects of tamoxifen. (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afimoxifene).

Current developer:    Ascend Therapeutics, Inc.

Afimoxifene gel is ASCEND's lead product, which is  an antiestrogen being evaluated for the treatment of cyclic breast pain and other estrogen dependent disorders in premenopausal women. Results of a Phase 2 clinical trial of afimoxifene gel indicate that the treatment was well tolerated and showed a statistically significant reduction in cyclic breast pain. In this trial, headaches were the most common side effect, which were in general mild and similar across treatment groups. ASCEND also believes that afimoxifene gel has the potential to treat a broad range of estrogen-related conditions. A multi-center, Phase 2 trial of afimoxifene gel vs. oral tamoxifen in women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) of the breast will be conducted by the National Cancer Prevention Group Consortium starting in the second quarter of 2009. This trial is being coordinated by the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute.  see http://www.ascendtherapeutics.com/about/.

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