THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., July
14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN), in partnership
with the International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA),
announced the launch of the Understanding Psoriatic Disease
Leveraging Insights for Treatment (UPLIFT) Innovation Challenge, a
new global initiative that aims to make a big impact within the
psoriatic disease community by fostering the development of
actionable solutions to address a challenge that people living with
psoriatic disease and healthcare providers continue to face.
Applicants are invited to submit innovative ideas that address the
challenge question: "How can we unite people living with psoriatic
disease and their healthcare providers to achieve optimal health
outcomes?"
Amgen and IFPA created the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge in
response to the undertreatment and strong disconnect between
patients' perceptions and standard measures of disease severity
documented in the 2020 UPLIFT survey. Data from UPLIFT was
presented virtually during the 6th World Psoriasis & Psoriatic
Arthritis Conference (WPPAC), June 30 - July
3, 2021.
The challenge is open to all local, regional and national
psoriasis- and psoriatic arthritis-focused patient organizations
worldwide. Entrants must submit applications by 23:59 EDT on
Monday, August 30, 2021, and rules
and additional details are available at
www.UPLIFTInnovationChallenge.com. The successful applicant will
receive a one-time donation or grant of $25,000 USD (or equivalent in local
currency)1 to support the execution of their
proposed solution.
"Despite tremendous advances in recent years, significant areas
of unmet need remain for people living with psoriatic disease,"
said Frida Dunger Johnsson,
executive director, IFPA. "Patient organizations are uniquely
positioned to develop and implement solutions that address these
needs as we are on the front lines, constantly working to help
improve the lives of people with psoriatic disease. We chose to
partner with Amgen on the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge as a global
opportunity fitting to the IFPA mission to improve the lives of all
people living with psoriatic disease."
UPLIFT Survey Results at WPPAC
The UPLIFT survey was designed to measure the effects of psoriasis
and psoriatic arthritis on people living with these conditions. The
data recently presented at WPPAC affirmed and refined the findings
of a previous survey conducted in 2012, the Multinational
Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (MAPP) survey. In a
comparison of UPLIFT and MAPP survey findings (abstract ID: 35700),
fewer people with psoriatic arthritis reported seeing a healthcare
provider for their disease in the past year (50% in UPLIFT vs. 83%
in MAPP) and a majority (74%) surveyed in UPLIFT perceived their
disease as moderate-to-severe despite 83% receiving treatment.
"Nearly a decade after the MAPP survey, during which more
treatments have become available, the UPLIFT survey suggests unmet
needs in patient care persist. It also revealed an ongoing
disconnect between patients' perceptions of their disease severity
and how healthcare providers categorize their disease using common
measures of disease severity," said Darryl
Sleep, M.D., senior vice president, global medical, and
chief medical officer at Amgen. "With these findings in mind, we
are proud to launch the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge with IFPA to
encourage much-needed dialogue and support the development of
potential solutions to help address the gaps in the treatment
journey for this community."
Two additional abstracts (abstract IDs: 35706 and 35218)
reported outcomes from subsets of UPLIFT data from participants in
five European countries: the United
Kingdom, France,
Germany, Italy and Spain. Of the 2,006 European UPLIFT
respondents, 72% of people had psoriasis only, 25% had both
psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and 3% had psoriatic arthritis
only. Findings included:
- A majority (62%) of people with psoriasis with limited skin
involvement (BSA ≤3%) characterized their current disease as
moderate or severe, and 79% had psoriasis in at least one special
area, such as the scalp, face, nail, palms or soles.
- While 84% of Europeans with psoriatic arthritis surveyed
reported receiving treatment, 72% characterized their current
disease as moderate-to-severe and substantial disease burden.
Further, 52% of Europeans with psoriatic arthritis surveyed had not
seen a healthcare provider for their disease in the past year.
About the UPLIFT Survey
In 2020, Amgen conducted the global Understanding Psoriatic Disease
Leveraging Insights for Treatment (UPLIFT) survey exploring the
evolution of attitudes and behaviors of 3,806 people living with
psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, 473 dermatologists and 450
rheumatologists in eight countries in North America, Europe and Asia. The survey was conducted in 2020 and was
overseen by an academic steering committee of thought-leaders in
dermatology and rheumatology. The survey builds upon findings from
the 2012 Multinational Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic
Arthritis (MAPP) survey, a first-of-its-kind study conducted by
Celgene that looked in-depth at the effect of psoriasis and
psoriatic arthritis on people living with these conditions.
Additional findings from UPLIFT can be accessed on the WPPAC
website or at www.UPLIFTInnovationChallenge.com.
Amgen Inflammation
Amgen brings therapies to millions of people with inflammatory
diseases, with a focus on serving unmet patient needs. For those
with debilitating moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis,
psoriatic arthritis, moderate to severe plaque psoriasis,
ankylosing spondylitis, asthma, and other chronic conditions, the
suffering and needs are severe. Complex diseases of inflammation
have defied simple solutions, and the breadth of inflammatory
disease and the burden patients bear is not well understood.
For more than two decades, Amgen has been committed to advancing
the science and the understanding around inflammation to address
the unmet patient needs that exist and expanding our portfolio. We
lead with science through discovery research that is
disease-agnostic and biology-first, modality-second. In doing so,
we have introduced and evolved novel therapies that have changed
the lives of patients.
Our commitment to patients is reflected not only in where we
have succeeded, but in where we have failed and opened new doors.
Throughout, we have remained dedicated to the principle of leading
with science, pursuing where pathways and promising discoveries in
inflammation take us, and not relenting until innovative solutions
for patients are found. It's a commitment that extends beyond
introducing novel therapies.
About Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for
patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering,
developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human
therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced
human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and
understand the fundamentals of human biology.
Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages
its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes
and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer
since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading
independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of
patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines
with breakaway potential.
For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow
us on www.twitter.com/amgen.
About The International Federation of Psoriasis
Associations
The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA) is a
non-profit organization uniting national and regional psoriasis
associations from around the world. Psoriasis and psoriatic
arthritis affect millions of people across the world. This is a
serious global health challenge, with a range of unmet needs.
People with psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis may struggle to get a
correct diagnosis or adequate treatment, have limited access to
care or face persistent stigma and discrimination. Since the
organization's founding in 1971, IFPA has worked to resolve these
challenges facing the international psoriasis community.
For more information, visit https://ifpa-pso.com/ and
follow IFPA on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram)
@psoriasisIFPA.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements that are
based on the current expectations and beliefs of Amgen. All
statements, other than statements of historical fact, are
statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements,
including any statements on the outcome, benefits and synergies of
collaborations, or potential collaborations, with any other company
(including BeiGene, Ltd. or any collaboration to manufacture
therapeutic antibodies against COVID-19), the performance of
Otezla® (apremilast) (including anticipated Otezla sales
growth and the timing of non-GAAP EPS accretion), or the Five Prime
Therapeutics, Inc. acquisition, as well as estimates of revenues,
operating margins, capital expenditures, cash, other financial
metrics, expected legal, arbitration, political, regulatory or
clinical results or practices, customer and prescriber patterns or
practices, reimbursement activities and outcomes, effects of
pandemics or other widespread health problems such as the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic on our business, outcomes, progress, or effects
relating to studies of Otezla as a potential treatment for
COVID-19, and other such estimates and
results. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks
and uncertainties, including those discussed below and more fully
described in the Securities and Exchange Commission reports filed
by Amgen, including our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and
any subsequent periodic reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on
Form 8-K. Unless otherwise noted, Amgen is providing this
information as of the date of this news release and does not
undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements
contained in this document as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise.
No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual
results may differ materially from those we project. Our results
may be affected by our ability to successfully market both new and
existing products domestically and internationally, clinical and
regulatory developments involving current and future products,
sales growth of recently launched products, competition from other
products including biosimilars, difficulties or delays in
manufacturing our products and global economic conditions. In
addition, sales of our products are affected by pricing pressure,
political and public scrutiny and reimbursement policies imposed by
third-party payers, including governments, private insurance plans
and managed care providers and may be affected by regulatory,
clinical and guideline developments and domestic and international
trends toward managed care and healthcare cost containment.
Furthermore, our research, testing, pricing, marketing and other
operations are subject to extensive regulation by domestic and
foreign government regulatory authorities. We or others could
identify safety, side effects or manufacturing problems with our
products, including our devices, after they are on the market. Our
business may be impacted by government investigations, litigation
and product liability claims. In addition, our business may be
impacted by the adoption of new tax legislation or exposure to
additional tax liabilities. If we fail to meet the compliance
obligations in the corporate integrity agreement between us and the
U.S. government, we could become subject to significant sanctions.
Further, while we routinely obtain patents for our products and
technology, the protection offered by our patents and patent
applications may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented by our
competitors, or we may fail to prevail in present and future
intellectual property litigation. We perform a substantial amount
of our commercial manufacturing activities at a few key facilities,
including in Puerto Rico, and also
depend on third parties for a portion of our manufacturing
activities, and limits on supply may constrain sales of certain of
our current products and product candidate development. An outbreak
of disease or similar public health threat, such as COVID-19, and
the public and governmental effort to mitigate against the spread
of such disease, could have a significant adverse effect on the
supply of materials for our manufacturing activities, the
distribution of our products, the commercialization of our product
candidates, and our clinical trial operations, and any such events
may have a material adverse effect on our product development,
product sales, business and results of operations. We rely on
collaborations with third parties for the development of some of
our product candidates and for the commercialization and sales of
some of our commercial products. In addition, we compete with other
companies with respect to many of our marketed products as well as
for the discovery and development of new products. Discovery or
identification of new product candidates or development of new
indications for existing products cannot be guaranteed and movement
from concept to product is uncertain; consequently, there can be no
guarantee that any particular product candidate or development of a
new indication for an existing product will be successful and
become a commercial product. Further, some raw materials, medical
devices and component parts for our products are supplied by sole
third-party suppliers. Certain of our distributors, customers and
payers have substantial purchasing leverage in their dealings with
us. The discovery of significant problems with a product similar to
one of our products that implicate an entire class of products
could have a material adverse effect on sales of the affected
products and on our business and results of operations. Our efforts
to collaborate with or acquire other companies, products or
technology, and to integrate the operations of companies or to
support the products or technology we have acquired, may not be
successful. A breakdown, cyberattack or information security breach
could compromise the confidentiality, integrity and availability of
our systems and our data. Our stock price is volatile and may be
affected by a number of events. Global economic conditions may
magnify certain risks that affect our business. Our business
performance could affect or limit the ability of our Board of
Directors to declare a dividend or our ability to pay a dividend or
repurchase our common stock. We may not be able to access the
capital and credit markets on terms that are favorable to us, or at
all.
CONTACT: Amgen, Thousand Oaks
Michael Strapazon, 805-313-5553
(Media)
Megan Fox, 805-447-1423 (Media)
Arvind Sood, 805-447-1060
(Investors)
1 Amgen exercises diligence in ensuring
compliance with local law and policy. All
patient organizations are strongly encouraged to consult
country specific law and compliance guidance before applying as
certain countries are unable to receive these types of donations
and grants based on local law or policy. Your submission may be
impacted by these laws at any time throughout the application
process.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/amgen-and-the-international-federation-of-psoriasis-associations-launch-uplift-innovation-challenge-301333328.html
SOURCE Amgen