Novartis hosts scientific symposium in Philippines to review research
approaches, clinical managemen
(Thomson Reuters ONE) - Corporate news announcement processed and transmitted by Hugin AS.The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ * Currently no treatment for Dengue, yet global prevalence has risen by 20 times since 1970 - increase from 5 to more than 100 countries with confirmed cases[1] * One-third of the population currently lives at risk of Dengue infection, and 653,000 disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) are lost globally per year[1] * WHO estimates that 50 million cases occur annually, resulting in 500,000 hospitalizations and 24,000 deaths, mainly among children[2]Basel, September 1, 2009 - The Novartis Institute for TropicalDiseases (NITD) is hosting a global symposium in the Philippines,bringing world-renowned Dengue experts together to discuss criticalissues facing Dengue treatment and prevention. The four-day symposiumwill focus on best research practices and clinical management, aswell as the growing global presence and unmet medical need to treatthis neglected disease."Dengue is a devastating disease that is impacting the lives ofmillions globally, in the developing as well as the developed world"says Paul Herrling, Head of Corporate Research at Novartis andChairman of the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases. "Ourlong-term commitment to helping reduce this global disease burden ispart of Novartis' Corporate Citizenship efforts to improve access tomedicines. By leveraging our experience, partnerships, and moderndrug discovery tools, we hope to come closer to our goal ofdiscovering effective treatments for tropical diseases."More than 50 million cases of Dengue and 500,000 Dengue-relatedhospitalizations occur each year in both developed and developingregions due to the under investment in research and development foreffective tools to detect and treat the disease[2]. Dengue is one ofthe most prevalent emerging diseases in humans with no preventativevaccines or antiviral cures available at present.NITD Approach to Dengue ResearchThe Dengue research group at NITD focuses on developing Dengueantiviral compounds, the idea being that administering antivirals inparticular areas at the first indication of an outbreak will be morecost-effective than mass inoculations.Goals for Dengue research at NITD include discovering medicines thatwill reduce the viral load in people with dengue and curtailtransmission of the virus as well as reduce dengue-related morbidityand mortality.Importance of PartnershipThe NITD takes a collaborative approach to research, as evidenced byits membership in the Dengue consortium, which consists of sixhealthcare and research companies that have joined forces to studyvector-borne diseases."Initiatives such as the Dengue consortium are paramount as theycreate best-in-class partnerships to support and develop successful,cost-effective treatments for neglected diseases," said PhilippineDepartment of Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III. "Partnershipsare an effective model for developing new drugs for important buthitherto neglected diseases, allowing us to bring much needed,effective and affordable treatments to those who need them most."Challenges in DengueIn 1970, only five countries in South East Asia reported Dengue. By2007, Dengue was endemic in more than 100 countries[1]. Althoughone-third of the world's population lives at risk of infection,little is known about the pattern and dynamics of Dengue virus withinoutbreak situations. Dengue illness appears similar to other febrileillness in the early stages, which means diagnosis is often delayedor confused with other illnesses. This reduces the effectiveness ofusing clinical diagnosis for patient care and disease surveillance.To combat this, the NITD is currently conducting several studies tobetter understand, identify and use genomic data and the molecularepidemiology of dengue to predict outbreaks and severity levels ofthe disease. Additional surveillance studies could prove useful indisease management, diagnosing dengue and predicting the likelihoodof hemorrhaging.About NITDToday's event is the first symposium held by Novartis on Denguefever. In 2008, Novartis held a symposium on Tuberculosis (TB) inMaputo, Mozambique (the second symposium held by Novartis in EastAfrica). In 2006, Novartis held a symposium on TB in St. Petersburg,Russia, and in 2007 in Masan, Korea. The NITD hosts such events inendemic regions to help scientists and partners understand the trueimpact of the disease and the unique local challenges doctors,clinicians and patients in the region face.The NITD represents a major part of Novartis' bid to improve thedeveloping world's access to medicines. The NITD's overarching goalis to discover novel treatments and prevention methods for majortropical diseases. In those developing countries where these diseasesare endemic, the Novartis Group intends to make treatments readilyavailable without profit.The focus of the NITD is to apply Novartis' drug-discovery expertiseand cutting-edge technology platforms to fight against infectiousdiseases that are currently not well covered by modern treatmentregimens, particularly dengue fever and tuberculosis.DisclaimerThe foregoing release contains forward-looking statements that can beidentified by terminology such as "will," "commitment," "hope,""goals," "predict," "could," "predicting," "intends," or similarexpressions, or by express or implied discussions regarding thepotential of an anti-Dengue drug, or regarding potential futurerevenues from such a drug. You should not place undue reliance onthese statements. Such forward-looking statements reflect thecurrent views of management regarding future events, and involveknown and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that maycause actual results to be materially different from any futureresults, performance or achievements expressed or implied by suchstatements. There can be no guarantee that an anti-Dengue drug willbe developed or approved for sale in any market. Nor can there be anyguarantee that such a drug will achieve any particular levels ofrevenue in the future. In particular, management's expectationsregarding an anti-Dengue drug could be affected by, among otherthings, unexpected research difficulties; unexpected clinical trialresults, including unexpected new clinical data and unexpectedadditional analysis of existing clinical data; unexpected regulatoryactions or delays or government regulation generally; the company'sability to obtain or maintain patent or other proprietaryintellectual property protection; competition in general; government,industry and general public pricing pressures; the impact that theforegoing factors could have on the values attributed to the NovartisGroup's assets and liabilities as recorded in the Group'sconsolidated balance sheet, and other risks and factors referred toin Novartis AG's current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities andExchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks oruncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions proveincorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated,believed, estimated or expected. Novartis is providing theinformation in this press release as of this date and does notundertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statementscontained in this press release as a result of new information,future events or otherwise.About NovartisNovartis provides healthcare solutions that address the evolvingneeds of patients and societies. Focused solely on healthcare,Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs:innovative medicines, cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals, preventivevaccines, diagnostic tools and consumer health products. Novartis isthe only company with leading positions in each of these areas. In2008, the Group's continuing operations achieved net sales of USD41.5 billion and net income of USD 8.2 billion. Approximately USD 7.2billion was invested in R&D activities throughout the Group.Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis Group companies employapproximately 99,000 full-time-equivalent associates and operate inmore than 140 countries around the world. For more information,please visit http://www.novartis.com.References[1] Mackenzie et al., 2004[2] World Health Organization (WHO) Dengue Fact Sheet. Available at http://www.who.int/topics/dengue/en/ # # #Novartis Media RelationsCentral media line : +41 61 324 2200Eric AlthoffNovartis Global Media Relations+41 61 324 7999 (direct)+41 79 593 4202 (mobile)eric.althoff(at)novartis.come-mail: media.relations(at)novartis.comNovartis Investor RelationsCentral phone: +41 61 324 7944Ruth Metzler-Arnold +41 61 324 9980 North America:Pierre-Michel Bringer +41 61 324 1065 Richard Jarvis +1 212 830 2433John Gilardi +41 61 324 3018 Jill Pozarek +1 212 830 2445Thomas Hungerbuehler +41 61 324 8425 Edwin +1 212 Valeriano 830 2456Isabella Zinck +41 61 324 7188e-mail: investor.relations(at)novartis.comhttp://hugin.info/134323/R/1338499/319379.pdf --- End of Message ---Novartis International AGPosfach Basel WKN: 904278; ISIN: CH0012005267; Index: SLCI, SMI, SPI, SLIFE;Listed: Main Market in SIX Swiss Exchange, ZLS in BX Berne eXchange;
Datum: 01.09.2009 - 07:16 Uhr
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