Sandoz teams up with World Child Cancer to "even the odds" for childern worldwide
Sandoz, together with leading global charity World Child Cancer (WCC), is pleased to announce a new health initiative in the Philippines, aimed at improving the standard of care for children suffering from cancer.
Cancer survival rates for children in the Philippines are less than 20%, compared to an average of 80% in developed countries. The goal of the new partnership, further details of which will be announced next month, is to help “even the odds” by supporting the development of specialist treatment centers in the island region of Mindanao.
Paul Geymayer, Sandoz regional head for Asia-Pacific, says: “This pilot project will take simple, pragmatic measures to attack cancer where it is most vulnerable: among underprivileged children suffering from forms of cancer that are absolutely treatable if given access to medicines, medical information and professional healthcare. Our goal is to make cancer care accessible to more children on the island, enhance the standard of care and improve survival rates.”
Jon Rosser, World Child Cancer CEO adds: “In the Philippines, there are approximately 3,500 new cases of childhood cancer every year, with two-thirds diagnosed only at advanced stages. More than 80% of patients live too far away from a treatment center to access the care they need and many are forced to discontinue treatment due to costs and travel difficulties. “However, many of these cases are curable and this project will help to ensure that these children are able to access the care they need”.
The WCC partnership highlights Sandoz’s commitment to address key global healthcare challenges by pioneering new approaches to increase access to medicine.
Lek, a Sandoz company, is one of the key pillars of the second-largest generic pharmaceutical company globally. Its role within Sandoz is to act as: a leading global development center for technologically demanding products and technologies; a key global manufacturing center for active pharmaceutical ingredients and medicines; a competence center for the development of vertically integrated products; a Sandoz competence center in the field of development and manufacturing of biosimilar active ingredients and products; a supply center for the markets of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), South East Europe (SEE) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and is responsible for marketing and sales of Sandoz products on the Slovenian market. For further information, please visit http://www.lek.si/en.
Sandoz, a Novartis company, is a global leader in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, driving sustainable access to high-quality healthcare. Sandoz supplies a broad range of affordable, primarily off-patent products to patients and customers around the globe. The Sandoz portfolio comprises approximately 1,100 molecules, which accounted for 2015 sales of USD 9.2 billion. Sandoz is headquartered in Holzkirchen, in Germany’s Greater Munich area. The company holds leading global positions in biosimilars as well as in generic anti-infectives, ophthalmics and transplantation medicines.
Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, eye care and cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals. Novartis is the only global company with leading positions in these areas. In 2015, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.4 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 8.9 billion (USD 8.7 billion excluding impairment and amortization charges). Novartis Group companies employ approximately 119,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are available in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.
This press release contains statements and conclusions based on projections of Lek’s future business operations. These estimates are derived from the best information currently available. In case these forecasts prove unreliable, the actual results could prove different from those projected.
For additional information contact:
Katarina Klemenc
Corporate Communications
Lek Pharmaceuticals d. d.
Phone: +386 1 580 22 43
Fax: +386 1 580 24 32
katarina.klemenc@sandoz.com