Astellas Pharma India Launches Prograf

Prograf is prescribed to prevent organ rejection in patients receiving allogenic liver, kidney, or heart transplants and was first approved and launched in Japan in 1993. Prograf is available in more than 80 countries and the global leader among immunosuppressant.

Teruo Yasufuku, managing director of Astellas India, said: “Our thrust in India is to improve the well being of patients by providing innovative, reliable products and the introduction of Prograf is a step in this direction. Having been rated as the Japan’s number two ethical pharmaceutical company (2008), we are confident our products will create their own niche in the Indian market.”

Himanshu Dave, director-sales and marketing at Astellas India, said: “To tap the 1.6bn rupees immunosuppressant market in India, Prograf will be promoted in Kidney, Liver, Heart transplants and marketed in more than 150 hospitals where transplantation facilities are available.

“In India, kidney transplants constitute 90% of the total transplantation, while liver transplants account for the remaining 10 percent. According to our compiled data, we estimate that around 4,000 – 4,200 kidney transplants, 350-400 liver transplants & very few heart transplants are done every year.”