World TB Day 2002 - In the News

From the GLOBAL ALLIANCE FOR TB DRUG DEVELOPMENT
a public-partnership to accelerate the development of new drugs against tuberculosis
New York - Brussels - Cape Town. www.tballiance.org

NEWS RELEASE     Contact: Gwynne Oosterbaan +1 212-227-7540 ext 209    gwynne.oosterbaan@tballiance.org       FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New TB Medicines to Save Millions; Yield Savings and Socio-Economic Returns
Market, Time is Right Now

New York, March 21, 2002 — Marking World TB Day-2002, the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance) underscores the urgent need for new, improved medicines to fight the tuberculosis pandemic, now infecting one-third the world’s population at an annual toll of $12 billion US to the poorest economies.  Since only one-quarter of TB patients complete the full 9-month treatment course, faster-acting medicines would dramatically improve the battle against the world’s greatest single infectious cause of death.  The TB Alliance, a not-for-profit drug development organization, is partnering with both public and private labs to develop new, affordable and accessible TB medicines by 2010.

“On World TB Day-2002, there is no longer any doubt that new anti-TB medicines would revolutionize the struggle against tuberculosis,” said Dr. Maria C. Freire, CEO of the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development. “With new scientific innovations and partners in place, we can both save millions of lives and expand the economic possibilities for scores of nations.”

Recent research from the TB Alliance indicates that new, faster acting medicines to fight TB would open up economic opportunities in developing countries and yield significant savings in associated expenses for TB treatment.  For example, associated healthcare costs for TB – which can reach $25,000 per case in the United States – would be reduced by up to 65% from a faster-acting TB medicine.

Today’s TB medicines impose a cumbersome daily treatment course of 6 to 9 months, are ineffective against multi-drug resistant (MDR-TB) strains, and do not provide prompt treatment of latent TB.  The Alliance identifies three key criteria for new TB medicines: 1) reduce treatment to less than 2 months, 2) be effective against MDR-TB and 3) expedite treatment of the latent form of TB.

The latest WHO data reveals one death from TB every fifteen seconds worldwide, and predicts that by 2020, another billion people will be infected and 35 million people will die from TB.  For the first time in eight years, the US rate of decline in TB cases has slowed to 2% from 7%, according to US Centers for Diseases of Control.  

“As we emphasize the connection between poverty and TB this year, today’s data is sobering,” said Dr. Giorgio Roscigno, Director of Strategic Development, Global Alliance for TB Drug Development. “Not only do we see the devastating impact of TB in 23 high-burden, lower-income countries, but we are also witnessing outbreaks in industrialized countries, where the dedicated TB control effort is seeing diminishing returns.  We can tackle both trends simultaneously with new, faster-acting anti-TB medicines.”

Last month the Alliance in-licensed a promising new compound, PA-824 with potential for a new TB treatment, from U.S. biotech company Chiron (Nasdaq: CHIR) and will be undertaking further pre-clinical studies shortly. 

About the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development

The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance) is a not-for-profit, public-private partnership seeking to accelerate the discovery and/or development of affordable new anti-TB drugs that will shorten treatment, be effective against multi-drug resistant strains, and improve treatment of latent infection.  The TB Alliance functions as a lean, virtual R&D organization that outsources R&D projects to public labs or industry. It builds a portfolio of promising drug candidates, manages their development through cooperative deals with public and private partners, providing staged funding and expert scientific and management guidance.  For more information about the TB Alliance, visit its web site at http://www.tballiance.org.

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