Biovest International Inc., which is planning to manufacture a personalized cancer vaccine in Coon Rapids, said it received orphan drug status for its product by the European Medicines Agency.
Samuel Duffey, Biovest's president, called the designation a "significant milestone." Biovest's vaccine received orphan drug status for treating mantle cell lymphoma, which will allow them a 10-year period of exclusivity in the European Union market once it receives regulatory approval.
Biovest said orphan drug status is a designation awarded to treatments of life-threatening or chronically debilitating conditions affecting no more than five in 10,000 people in the European Union.
