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  • Title: Cyclofem shoots into injectable market.
    Journal: Family Plan World; 1992; ():19. PubMed ID: 12290896.
    Abstract:
    Cyclofem is a combination of progestin and estrogen, which when injected monthly into reproductive-aged women, confers contraceptive protection. The product was originally developed by the Upjohn Company in the 1970s as a version of the injectable Depo-Provera with estrogen added to regulate bleeding. Upjohn, however, discontinued research upon new contraceptives in 1985, and Cyclofem fell into the hands of the World Health Organization (WHO). Unable to find another pharmaceutical company to help market and distribute the product, WHO enlisted the assistance of the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), a Seattle-based nonprofit group which develops and introduces health products in the developing world. PATH established the Concept Foundation, a private nonprofit organization headquartered in Thailand, to identify and license developing country pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce Cyclofem. Manufacturers plan Cyclofem to be available in Mexico from July 1992. Following its introduction in Mexico, Cyclofem should arrive in Indonesia and Thailand by 1993 with plans to expand to Chile, Jamaica, and Tunisia soon after. Cyclofem reduces menstrual bleeding among users, women who discontinue use of Cyclofem return to previous fertility levels faster than users of other injectables, Cyclofem contains half the progestin dose of Depo-Provera, manufacturers claim a 0% failure rate among test subjects compared to a 0.1% first-year failure rate for Depo-Provera, and Cyclofem costs less per injection than Depo-Provera. Depo-Provera users will, however, pay less for their contraception since they require only four shots per year. Use of Cyclofem may also prove inconvenient for women in developing countries who have to travel long distances for health services. Manufacturers nonetheless hope that Cyclofem's seven-day window will allow users to adjust to clinic schedules. Cyclofem should find its biggest market in the developing world, but is not likely to displace Depo-Provera as the world's leading injectable.
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