Novartis continues to invest heavily in malaria control
THE PHILIPPINES on Wednesday joined the global observance of World Malaria Day with the theme, “Sustain Gains, Save Lives: Invest in Malaria.” The celebration focused on the global community’s call for continued investment in malaria to sustain the gains that have already been made in malaria control.
One of the reasons research-based Swiss healthcare company Novartis has gained a reputation of being a maverick is its decision to invest in tropical disease research and access programs. This “unprofitable” decision is an exception in an industry that has traditionally neglected illnesses such as dengue, tuberculosis and malaria, which are endemic in developing countries.
Said Novartis CEO Joe Jimenez: “In many parts of the world, malaria has been defeated. Yet in many other places, it remains all too common, especially in sub-saharan Africa. But malaria can be prevented and treated, and Novartis is working to help. The reason for all this is simple: No one should die from malaria today.”
500-M treatments
Since 2001 Novartis, through its Malaria Initiative, has supplied the breakthrough antimalaria drug artemether + lumefantrine without profit to the public sector in malariaendemic countries. As of April 25 this year, Novartis has supplied 500-million artemether + lumefantrine treatments to over 60 countries, including the Philippines, impacting more than one million lives. Last year alone, Novartis delivered 100 million artemether + lumefantrine treatments, more than a third of the total estimated global artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT) deliveries (287 million) in 2011.
Since 2002 when the Novartis Malaria Initiative was first implemented in the country, Novartis has provided without profit over 170,000 treatments of artemether + lumefantrine to Filipino patients, saving an estimated 43,000 lives.
“Novartis remains committed to continuing the life-saving mission of our Malaria Initiative. We are working with the Department of Health and other stakeholders to ensure effective and affordable protection and treatment are available to all Filipinos at risk of malaria,” said Thomas Weigold, country president and managing director, Novartis Healthcare Philippines.
Asymptomatic patients carry the malaria infection but do not display clinical symptoms of the disease. In malaria-endemic countries, a large pro- portion of infections are asymptomatic. As they do not seek treatment for their infection, asymptomatic patients constitute a reservoir of malaria parasites that can be transmitted to other, more vulnerable populations and are therefore a real publichealth risk.
One of the Novartis strategies to help eliminate malaria is to decrease malaria transmission. Using a novel approach, Novartis is currently assessing the use of therapy in mass screening followed by targeted treatment of asymptomatic patients in the African country of Burkina Faso. This is the first comprehensive and wide-scale study looking at asymptomatic patients, including more than 13,000 people across 18 villages.
If effective, this strategy could decrease malaria transmission and become a stepping stone toward elimination of the disease. Study results are expected within the year.
Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research (NIBR) has recently discovered a new dual-acting class of compounds known as imidazolepiperazines, with the potential to both prevent and treat malaria infections. These drug candidates inhibit the malaria parasite at the liver and blood stages, targeting both stages in the parasite’s reproduction cycle.
A step forward
The findings represent a step forward in the fight against malaria as most current treatments only target blood infections. Researchers believe both liver and blood infections need to be treated to eliminate the disease. This is the second new class of antimalarials discovered by the same group in the last two years. NITD609, the other new compound that holds promise as a next-generation treatment for malaria, if confirmed, represents the spiroindolone class and is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials.
In February this year, Novartis along with its partner Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), announced that 100million treatments of dispersible artemether + lumefantrine have been delivered to 39 malaria-endemic countries.
Dispersible artemether + lumefantrine is the first sweettasting dispersible ACT developed especially for children, and the first WHO prequalified child-friendly ACT. It addresses an unmet need for pediatric medicines as young children in Africa are disproportionately affected by malaria. It is estimated that 86 percent of malaria deaths occur in children under the age of 5 years.