Benzinga | Feb 10, 2021 07:40AM EST

Impel NeuroPharma Partners With Veeva Systems to Build Integrated, Digital-First Commercial Foundation

Impel NeuroPharma and Veeva Systems (NYSE:VEEV) today announced a strategic partnership as Impel continues advancing its pipeline of innovative medicines for central nervous system (CNS) diseases with high unmet needs. Veeva and Impel will collaborate on important pre-launch preparations for Impel's migraine treatment INP104 which, if approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will be marketed under the trade name TRUDHESA(tm). With Veeva Commercial Cloud, Impel will have a complete commercial suite of data, software, and consulting services to drive its strategy and accelerate field engagement.

"In January we were pleased that the FDA accepted for review Impel's new drug application (NDA) for TRUDHESA(tm). Given this milestone, this is the perfect time for us to enter this strategic collaboration as Veeva is a proven technology leader and the ideal partner to help us meet our aggressive commercial timelines," said Adrian Adams, chairman and chief executive officer, Impel NeuroPharma. "We look forward to Veeva's support and expertise to help us ensure an efficient, digital-first, and compliant approach to commercialization subject, of course, to approval by the FDA later this year."

FDA review of Impel's NDA for TRUDHESA(tm) marks a major advance toward commercialization of this novel therapy. TRUDHESA(tm) is the first and only product to utilize Impel's first-of-its-kind, proprietary Precision Olfactory Delivery(r) (POD) technology to deliver treatment directly to the vascular-rich upper nasal space. Traditional nasal delivery systems, such as pumps or sprays, deliver medicine to the lower nasal cavity which can result in variability in efficacy because of unpredictable delivery and variable absorption into the bloodstream.

Studies have shown that Impel's POD(r) technology allows for more predictable response due to the more consistent delivery and rapid absorption into the bloodstream, while being easy to use for patients. This new delivery technology may be particularly important for the majority of patients with migraine who experience nausea and vomiting during an attack.

To accelerate its market preparation, Impel will adopt Veeva's suite of commercial applications, including multichannel Veeva CRM as the foundation for in-person and digital engagement with physicians and Veeva Data Cloud for longitudinal patient data to effectively segment right patients groups. Veeva business consulting will also help design and implement customer-centric strategies that will enable Impel sales professionals to increase the value of their targeted interactions with healthcare professionals.

"Impel is pioneering a new approach to treating CNS and other diseases with high unmet needs and Veeva is proud to assist with the commercialization of their innovative products," said Peter Gassner, founder and CEO of Veeva. "We are committed to delivering the most advanced technology, data, and consulting that accelerates the industry's move to digital and speeds the delivery of novel medicines to patients."