Drug makers telling Greeks to pay upfront

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The European debt crisis is hitting close to home for Bay Area pharmaceutical companies, with unpaid bills from Greece, Spain and Portugal piling so high that some drugmakers are now insisting on payment upfront.

Genentech Inc., Gilead Sciences Inc., BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc and Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc. are among the companies waiting for millions of dollars from cash-strapped southern European countries, according to recent Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

At BioMarin, Greece’s inability to pay for its products has the company requiring that the Greek government pay for all drug purchases upfront, said Stephen Aselage, the Novato-based company’s chief business officer.

“Greece pays us in advance, more than a year in advance,” Aselage said. “It’s fairly rare that we would set that up.” Due to the centralized health care system in Greece, most BioMarin products are bought directly by the Greek government.

Millennium begins early-stage trial of Sunesis cancer drug

Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. started a Phase I safety trial of a solid tumor-fighting drug with South San Francisco’s Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Although it has a limited number of patients, the trial is a big deal for Sunesis (NASDAQ: SNSS) because the agreement with Cambridge, Mass.-based Millennium includes milestone payments. Sunesis did not say if dosing of the first patient in the Phase I trial triggered a milestone, but CEO Daniel Swisher said the company is pleased to see that the project moved quickly into Phase I.

Cancer drug shortages threaten trials

Gearing up for a pivotal late-stage study of its lead tumor-fighting drug, Threshold Pharmaceuticals has checked all the boxes with regulators, investors, doctors and patients.
Yet one nagging question remains: Will it have enough vials of an essential generic chemotherapy drug to last throughout the trial?
Threshold isn’t alone. A national shortage of key generic cancer drugs — often used in combination with treatments like Threshold’s or to provide statistical backdrops in studies — is threatening clinical trials.
The shortfall is forcing a handful of Bay Area drug developers to develop backup plans, including stockpiling supplies.

Sunesis Pharma lands $4M in Millennium Pharma deal

Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc. has been paid $4 million by Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. as part of a program to develop cancer drugs together.

Sunesis Pharmaceuticals plans 1-for-6 reverse stock split

Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc. plans a 1-for-6 reverse stock split after the market closes on Monday.

The South San Francisco company (NASDAQ: SNSS) hopes this move will make it easier to comply with NASDAQ listing regulations about stock price. Sunesis has struggled to meet the $1 minimum bid price rule. The company also hopes the reverse split will, by raising share prices, “attract additional shareholder interest.”