Asia Tech Wire (Feb 5) -- Japanese drugmaker Eisai plans to launch Alzheimer's drug Leqembi in China by September this year, according to Reuters.

Sunday's report quoted an Eisai spokesperson as saying that the company expects to start using the drug in China by September and forecast a total of 1,500 patients in the country by March 2025.

In early January, Eisai announced that it had received approval for Leqembi in China for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild AD dementia.

Eisai said that following the traditional approval in the U.S. in July 2023 and in Japan in September, China is the third country to approve the drug for marketing.