Amgen, Kirin to Develop Cancer Patient Treatment

Amgen Inc., the Thousand Oaks biotechnology giant, agreed to jointly develop a treatment for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy with Japanese beer company Kirin Brewery Co.

Amgen and Kirin, which has a pharmaceutical division, are longtime research and marketing partners for Amgen’s two blockbuster drugs, Epogen and Neupogen.

Under the new agreement, Amgen and Kirin will develop a platelet growth factor, a protein that can potentially treat a common chemotherapy side effect involving a chronic decrease in the number of blood platelets.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.