Vertex Grants $1 Million to 15 Non-profit Organizations to Advance Initiatives for People Living with Cystic Fibrosis
May 04 2017 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
Third Annual CF “Circle of Care” Grants Connect
CF Community Members Around the World to Share Their Ideas and
Inspiration
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) today
announced the grant recipients for its 2017 Cystic Fibrosis (CF)
Circle of Care program, an initiative that funds innovative,
patient-centric programs for the CF community. This year, Vertex
awarded a total of $1 million to 15 non-profit medical, academic,
patient and community organizations. Since starting the program in
2015, Vertex has awarded 50 grants totaling $3 million to
organizations around the world.
“Circle of Care grant recipients are committed to making life
better for people with CF and their families,” said Jeffrey
Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Vertex. “We are proud to support these organizations and
inspired by the impact and international reach their projects
have.”
Selected by a committee of CF community members and Vertex
employees, this year’s recipients include organizations from
Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, the United
Kingdom and the United States. A complete list of recipients and
project descriptions is available here.
“Receiving a CF Circle of Care grant is not only a valuable
source of funding, but it also helps connect non-profits like ours
with other groups who are striving to make a similar impact in the
CF community,” said Brian Callanan, Founder and Executive Director
of the Cystic Fibrosis Lifestyle Foundation. “This grant enables us
to create a new collaborative program to help people with CF live
healthier lives in partnership with three other organizations
looking to model our program in their local regions. We are so
grateful to be able to help them launch such important work with
these funds.”
Each year, Vertex invites Circle of Care grant recipients from
around the world to a colloquium to discuss their projects and
share advice and inspiration. The next colloquium will take place
in November 2017 during the 31st North American Cystic Fibrosis
Conference (NACFC) in Indianapolis, Indiana.
About CF Circle of CareResearch initiatives funded by
Vertex's CF Circle of Care program include programs or tools
that:
- Support people with CF living a fuller,
more engaged lifestyle;
- Address the psycho-social challenges
people with CF face;
- Better support the family members of
people with CF;
- Support people with CF taking more
ownership of their healthcare; and
- Focus on the education of people with
CF, including topics on transition and adherence and navigating new
environments with CF.
About Cystic FibrosisCystic fibrosis is a rare,
life-shortening genetic disease affecting approximately 75,000
people in North America, Europe and Australia.
CF is caused by a defective or missing CFTR protein resulting from
mutations in the CFTR gene. Children must inherit two
defective CFTR genes — one from each parent — to have CF.
There are approximately 2,000 known mutations in
the CFTR gene. Some of these mutations, which can be
determined by a genetic test, lead to CF by creating defective or
too few CFTR proteins at the cell surface. The defective or missing
CFTR protein results in poor flow of salt and water into or out of
the cell in a number of organs, including the lungs. This leads to
the buildup of abnormally thick, sticky mucus that can cause
chronic lung infections and progressive lung damage in many
patients that eventually leads to death. The median predicted age
of survival for a person born today with CF is 41 years, but the
median age of death is 27 years.
About VertexVertex is a global biotechnology company that
aims to discover, develop and commercialize innovative medicines so
people with serious diseases can lead better lives. In addition to
our clinical development programs focused on cystic fibrosis,
Vertex has more than a dozen ongoing research programs aimed at
other serious and life-threatening diseases.
Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Mass., Vertex today has research
and development sites and commercial offices in the United States,
Europe, Canada and Australia. For seven years in a row, Science
magazine has named Vertex one of its Top Employers in the life
sciences. For additional information and the latest updates from
the company, please visit www.vrtx.com.
Vertex Is All In for CFThe CF community motivates Vertex
employees each and every day – to dig deeper, to do more, to
explore the “what ifs,” and to push the boundaries of what we know.
We aim to discover and develop medicines that will treat the
underlying cause of CF for the vast majority of people with the
disease, and our ultimate goal is to cure it. Beyond our
transformational medicines, we help people with CF lead active
lives and pursue higher education, and we fund independent research
and innovative patient centric programs. To learn more please visit
www.vrtxallincf.com.
(VRTX-GEN)
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Vertex Pharmaceuticals IncorporatedChris Stamm,
617-341-6992mediainfo@vrtx.com
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