Forendo Pharma receives €3 million loan to support development of endometriosis treatment

Forendo Pharma — portfolio company of Karolinska Development — has been granted a €3 million loan from Business Finland to support the development of a novel drug for the treatment of endometriosis.

Treatments for endometriosis that are currently available offer limited efficacy or can cause harmful side effects. In recent research, carried out in Finland, it has been revealed that inhibition of the HSD17B1 enzyme offers new opportunities in targeting endometriosis lesions. Forendo’s lead programme is a HSD17B1 inhibitor — FOR-6219 — that is about to enter the clinical development phase.

This new funding will be used to strengthen the company’s women’s health portfolio with a DUAL HSD (hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase) Inhibitor programme, targeting gynaecological conditions, including endometriosis.

“Business Finland's decision to grant a loan is encouraging in the way that it gives extern validation to the research and development in Forendo Pharma,” explained Viktor Drvota, CEO of Karolinska Development.

“The Forendo Pharma programs are expected to bring radical improvements in the treatment of endometriosis. This would impact the wellbeing of tens of millions of women, who now suffer from the disease,” stated Business Finland's director of SMEs, Karl Komulainen.