Healthcare Solutions

A beneficial relationship between our human skin and light requires balance. Chronic overexposure to light poses a direct threat to health. Yet, lack of light exposure leads to vitamin D deficiency and depressive disorders. In short, we need solutions that help maintain a healthy balance.

CLINUVEL’s proven pharmaceutical technology protects skin from light (photoprotection) for patients with one of the most severely expressed genetic conditions. It has also been shown to play a key role in repairing DNA which has been damaged by light exposure. Over decades, we have developed know-how to understand what is required to achieve a balanced relationship with light. As part of CLINUVEL’s expansion, we are now working to deliver solutions to targeted audiences, which help them achieve a lifelong balance.

Skin cross section, demonstrating the depth of penetration attributed to UVC/UVB/UVA and HEV solar radiation.

We Are All at Risk of Skin Damage

Every hour of exposure to ultraviolet (UV) and high energy visible (HEV) light causes of thousands of DNA lesions in our skin. The first of these occurs within a picosecond of light exposure, and damage can continue to accumulate for hours after exposure.

Over time, under general conditions our bodies are expected to repair much of the light-induced DNA damage. Yet, many of these lesions actually are left unrepaired as we age and as the frequency of UV exposure increases, the damage ultimately leads to skin cancer.

In addition, some of us are much higher risk to incur skin cancers than others due to variations in our ability to repair DNA damage. Genetics, age, and specific diseases or medications can play a role in impairing our reparative functions. As a result, the potential population numbers are high: collectively, some 2 billion people are at increased skin cancer risk. Within these groups we have identified eligible populations for our future products.

“CLINUVEL’s pharmaceutical technology and know-how can be translated to healthcare solutions for the benefit of specific groups”

Next Generation Skin Care: Dermatocosmetics

Due to the public’s increasing awareness of the adverse impact of prolonged exposure to solar and HEV light on the skin, there is growing demand for innovative non-prescription skin care products. Dermatocosmetic products are being provided by a large range of purely cosmetic and lifestyle-focused companies to meet this demand. Dermatocosmetics are specially formulated products designed to assist skin health with a focus on anti-ageing, repair and regeneration of the skin. To achieve this, dermatocosmetics combine a dermatological action to treat the skin and a cosmetic action to cleanse, moisturise, and alter the appearance of an individual’s skin. The worldwide market for dermatocosmetics is large and growing rapidly. It is estimated that the market, at US$57 billion in 2020, will grow by more than 7% per annum through to 2030. 1 The wide range of products available offer different benefits and their efficacy varies markedly. This is one of the opportunities for CLINUVEL. Whilst many products promise regeneration and rejuvenation of the skin, seldom are these based on the research into a new class of molecules tested in human pathology over decades or the knowledge accumulated by teams focused on photoprotection, as has been undertaken by CLINUVEL.

CLINUVEL’s Dermatocosmetic Products

CLINUVEL has identified specific target groups who are poorly attended and with a certain unmet need to assist skin’s DNA protection and repair. We are building a network of communities to understand their needs and develop solutions to help them. These groups of individuals have high sensitivity to light/UV and are prone to long-term damage and are at high risk due to:

  • their ‘fair’ skin types;
  • their work or lifestyle activities; or
  • lifelong immunosuppression, having received an organ transplant.

The objective of CLINUVEL’s Healthcare Solutions Division is to introduce leave-on products, topical formulations based on melanocortin molecules, to provide photoprotection and DNA-restoration for these groups of individuals.

We will take a prudent and gradual approach to the launch of the dermatocosmetics product range. The first product line offers polychromatic protection for extreme conditions; the second and third product lines aim to provide DNA protection and repair.

CLINUVEL is introducing and adding new technology and know-how originating from a long executed pharmaceutical program. This specific origin, scientific focus, target groups and pharmacology itself sets CLINUVEL apart from any of the established cosmetic houses.

CLINUVEL will provide regular updates on the progress of the Healthcare Solutions Division through to the launch of the first polychromatic product in FY2022.

1. Prescient Strategic Intelligence, Dermacosmetics Market Research Report, July 2021.

Photo of a cosmetics bottle
Photo of a cosmetics bottle and serum tub