SK Life Science is encouraging patients beetling down the long and winding road toward seizure-free life to switch gears. In a new nationwide direct-to-consumer (DTC) ad, the Xcopri manufacturer asks partial-onset seizure patients to consider switching to a new treatment.
Xcopri sales beat expectations last year, climbing more than 50% to hit $322 million. SK is aiming to keep sales on an upward trajectory this year and turn the medicine into a blockbuster toward the end of the decade. But with Xenon Pharmaceuticals aiming to publish phase 3 data on a rival molecule early next year, a potential branded competitor for the generic-focused market is on the horizon.
SK is therefore stepping up promotion of Xcopri with a campaign that is now running across streaming TV, digital, social and healthcare platforms. The “Road to Reduction” campaign includes a one-minute ad that shows a young man sitting in the passenger seat of a car on a road trip with his father.
“The road to partial-onset seizure reduction can be long and winding. You feel like you’re not in the driver’s seat, afraid to try a new medicine because of side effects or going backwards. But doing nothing means you won’t get anywhere,” the voiceover says. “Try switching gears to Xcopri.”
The visuals mirror the voiceover, with the car variously taking bends, needing to reverse because a tree is blocking the road and spinning its wheels in the mud, going nowhere.
The journey improves once the car takes a turnoff signposted “Significant Seizure Reduction.” The young man then visits a physician, and the road trip ends with father and son enjoying the view across a vast expanse of forested hills.
“At SK Life Science, we’ve always been committed to elevating the voices of people living with epilepsy and advocating for patient voices to be heard when choosing a treatment option,” Chris Fanale, SK’s executive director of marketing, said in a statement. “This campaign reflects a deeply authentic understanding of what patients and caregivers face daily—and encourages them to talk with their doctors about options that may help reduce seizures, even in people who have been living with uncontrolled seizures for a long time.”
The TV spot is the latest in a series of actions intended to boost awareness of Xcopri among patients and healthcare professionals. In 2021, SK ran a DTC campaign, aiming one ad at patients and another at physicians, and also enlisted social media influencers to an awareness push. The company got even more creative in 2022 and 2023, sending reps out with men’s work boots to tell a patient’s story and creating a simulated rainstorm at a conference.