That means, it says, its sole purpose is to distribute 100 per cent of its profits to local patient-support and medical-research organisations.
The focus of FBM is on the consumer of medications -- at this stage, medications sourced by FBM to treat breast cancer.
The medications sold by FBM are generic versions of two frontline breast-cancer treatments, newly available through a prescription from a doctor.
All of the profits go to supporting two services, Breast Cancer Network Australia and the Breast Cancer Institute of Australia.
FBM director John Hurley explains how the company works.
"FBM works on the basis of a full-blown pharmaceutical company. We source product from overseas. We sell the product through distribution chains, et cetera, the same as other pharmaceutical companies. The only difference -- well, the major difference -- is that we give a hundred per cent of the profits we generate back to patient support and research in Australia."
Mr Hurley has witnessed firsthand the effects of chronic diseases, including breast and bowel cancer, Type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer's disease, on family members and friends.
He felt, after having such a successful career, it was time for him to give something back.
"It's one of those things that you can say, 'I've really done something in my life.' I have a strong belief that, if you're given an opportunity to do something like this, you kind of like have to do it. If you have the opportunity to help people like this, for people who can't help themselves, you should actually go and do that type of thing."
Bruce Mann is a professor of surgery at the University of Melbourne and a specialist breast surgeon with two major Victorian hospitals.
He is also on the boards of Breast Cancer Network Australia and the Breast Cancer Institute Australia.
He is a keen supporter of FBM and says women who are prescribed these medications now have a choice about where their money goes.
"So from their point of view, they will have the same medication that will cost the same amount. The side benefit is that, by purchasing and consuming this brand of the medicine, they will be supporting these two causes."
Professor Mann says the model used by FBM uses the structure inherent in private enterprise to benefit the not-for-profit sector.
"This model fits between them. It's working in the for-profit space -- the pharmaceutical-industry space -- yet it's directing the profits to these areas that are generally the domain of the not-for-profits. I find it's novel and very refreshing."
Breast-cancer survivor Domini Stuart says she was lucky to live in a large city with ready access to breast-cancer treatments.
Through her involvement with organisations such as Breast Cancer Network Australia, she says, she discovered women in rural and regional areas were not so lucky.
She admits she was sceptical of the initiative at first, though.
"Well, when I first heard about it, I did think it was too good to be true. I just thought, 'pharmaceuticals ... not-for-profit ...' it just didn't sound as if they'd be on the same page. So I actually talked to Breast Cancer Network about it, and their board was looking into this very carefully, of course, because they've always had a policy of not accepting donations from pharmaceutical companies. They did all of their thorough research and said, 'Yep, it looks like a really good initiative.' So that was when I decided to be ... well, an advocate, I suppose."
FBM director John Hurley says he would like to see the company expand its model to raise funds for other conditions.
