DEERFIELD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lundbeck has joined the Global Alzheimer’s Platform (GAP) to help accelerate the development of new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. GAP is a research initiative that aims to reduce the time and costs of Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials, develop an infrastructure that promotes innovation, and assure international collaboration on Alzheimer’s disease treatments. Lundbeck is a global pharmaceutical company specializing in brain disorders, with several compounds under development for Alzheimer’s disease.
Led by the Global CEO Initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease (CEOi) and the New York Academy of Sciences, GAP is driven through collaboration among pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, nonprofit patient advocacy organizations, and public funding. As Lundbeck develops new treatments for people living with Alzheimer’s disease, GAP’s efforts will be particularly impactful.
"Lundbeck's engagement in the leadership of the GAP Initiative greatly strengthens our efforts to bring private, public and academic leaders together to accelerate the development and delivery of innovative Alzheimer's treatments to those with or at risk for this disease," said George Vradenburg, Chairman and CEO of GAP Inc. "We welcome Lundbeck as an active member of GAP because they bring not only broad industry experience but also specialized expertise in brain disease and a rich pipeline of Alzheimer's disease compounds."
GAP is establishing a global, standing, trial-ready platform that may decrease clinical testing cycle times by two years or more and should reduce costs. The platform would promote efficiency and uniformity in trial populations through large, well-characterized, trial-ready cohorts, certified clinical trial sites, and an adaptive proof-of-concept trial mechanism.
Lundbeck currently has three compounds in development, including two Phase III investigational therapies to address symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and a Phase I vaccine candidate to potentially slow disease progression.
“Collaboration within the industry and academia have for many years been crucial to Lundbeck’s success in helping people with brain diseases. We anticipate this initiative will yield similar, meaningful results for Alzheimer’s disease,” said Gary Tong, MD, PhD, U.S. Therapeutic Area Head, Dementia Clinical Research, Lundbeck U.S. “We’re looking forward to working with GAP to improve the clinical trial process in hopes of accelerating the availability of new therapies for the Alzheimer’s disease community.”
According to Alzheimer's Disease International, Alzheimer’s disease is estimated to affect 5.4 million people in the U.S. and nearly 44 million people worldwide. The prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease is projected to reach 135 million by 2050.1 Despite these rising numbers, there are promising therapies currently in clinical development.
About Lundbeck
Lundbeck is a global pharmaceutical company specialized in brain diseases. For more than 70 years, we have been at the forefront of research within neuroscience. Our key areas of focus are alcohol dependence, Alzheimer’s disease, bipolar disorder, depression/anxiety, epilepsy, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and symptomatic neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (NOH).
An estimated 700 million people worldwide are living with brain disease and far too many suffer due to inadequate treatment, discrimination, a reduced number of working days, early retirement and other unnecessary consequences. Every day, we strive for improved treatment and a better life for people living with brain disease – we call this Progress in Mind. Read more at www.lundbeck.com/global/about-us/progress-in-mind.
In 2015, Lundbeck celebrates its 100th anniversary. During the past century, millions of people have been treated with our therapies. It is complex and challenging to develop improved treatments for brain disease, but we keep our focus: There is still so much we need to achieve in the next 100 years to ensure a better life for people living with brain disease.
Lundbeck has approximately 6,000 employees in 57 countries who are engaged in the entire value chain throughout research, development, production, marketing, and sales. Our pipeline consists of several late-stage development programs and our products are available in more than 100 countries.
Lundbeck in the U.S.
In the U.S., Lundbeck employs more than 800 people focused solely on accelerating therapies for brain diseases. With a special commitment to the lives of patients, families and caregivers, Lundbeck US actively engages in hundreds of initiatives each year that support our patient communities.
To learn more, visit us at www.LundbeckUS.com and connect with us on Twitter at @LundbeckUS.
References:
1. The Crisis. USAgainstAlzheimer’s. http://www.usagainstalzheimers.org/crisis. Accessed July 31, 2015.
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