Global who programme for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis.

London, March 2010.- Andrew Witty, CEO GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has announced that GSK will dedicate its new drug production center, located in Nashik (India), the production of Albendazole, drug used in combination with each other within the world programme of the World Health Organization (who) to the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis.

With this announcement GSK reiterates its commitment to seeking solutions to improve the public health world, and especially to do it in his fight with diseases that mainly affect developing countries. This new production center, which has meant an investment of 15 million rupees, $330,000, will annually produce about 300 million more treatments of Albendazole, GSK already is currently constitutes the largest donation of drugs in the history of the global pharmaceutical industry.

The world for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis programme has become the programme’s administration and donation of drugs that has grown throughout the history of public health. Since that started in the year 2000, more than 1.9 billion treatment to more than 570 million people in 48 of the 83 countries that Lymphatic Filariasis is an endemic disease has been given.

Andrew Witty said: 30 years scientific advances led to the eradication of smallpox. Today, we hope that other disease, Lymphatic Filariasis, is restricted to the history books. New data are encouraging and show that the simplicity of the programme for the Elimination of diseases who works perfectly. With this investment in the India will be able to focus on one of the largest areas suffering from Lymphatic Filariasis, as well as support the efforts made by the Government of the India to control and eradicate this disabling tropical disease ”.

Also added: is a lesson in humility to form part of a program that has been able to deal with 570 million people in 48 countries. GSK is proud of the role in the programme against Lymphatic Filariasis and we are fully committed to the eradication of the disease around the world ”.

Currently worldwide, more than 1.3 billion people at risk of disability or disfigurement caused by Lymphatic Filariasis, a third of whom live in the India. It is estimated the cost to the economy of the India can exceed the 840 million of us $ each year, due to the costs of treatment, the reduction of working time and lost productivity.

The center of production of GSK in Nashik can get to save the health system of the India some 1,380 million rupees, the treatment costs US $ 30 million, as well as improving the lives of 550 million people at risk of developing this debilitating disease.
Center East of Nashik represents half of the annual production capacity of GSK for Lymphatic Filariasis from the who programme. The technology used in this plant was moved from Cape Town and its manufacture began in August 2009. The first batch of 15 million Albendazole tablets was sent to the who on December 23, 2009. It is expected that this year Nashik produce 300 million treatments.

Since its inception, the international work in the who programme to eradicate Lymphatic Filariasis has made unprecedented progress to rid the world of one of the most disabling diseases. The relationship cost-effectiveness, together with the achievements of the programme, have become the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis programme a model to follow for future partnerships at the international level can carry out for large scale, improve public health and health officials have been encouraged to request the creation of a fund specialized treatment and eradication of diseases tropical forgotten.

Given that the global programme is ongoing with the goal of eradicating Lymphatic Filariasis by 2020, years will witness tremendous growth and a rapid expansion.

About Lymphatic Filariasis

Lymphatic Filariasis, also known as elephantiasis, is a parasitic infection transmitted by mosquitoes that causes swelling of the limbs, breasts and genitals. Considered a neglected tropical disease, Lymphatic Filariasis almost exclusively affects the poorest people on the planet. Approximately one-fifth of the world’s population (about 1.3 billion people) run the risk of Filariasis lymphatic and approximately 120 million from 83 countries already suffer from it.