According to the
American Lung Association, more than 35 million Americans are living with chronic lung diseases such as asthma and emphysema.
[i] Other respiratory illnesses include tuberculosis, influenza, pneumonia, and sarcoidosis, among others.
October 23-29 is National Respiratory Care Week. Recognizing the impact that lung and respiratory conditions have on the American population, Innovation.org highlights important research and advances in respiratory health.
Infants: About 10 percent of babies born prematurely will suffer from infant respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). The approval of three medicines in recent history for this one rare condition marked important advances in the treatment for neonates with immature lungs. With these medicines, premature infants have a better chance of surviving this life-threatening disorder.
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Children: A 2010
report by PhRMA found that biopharmaceutical researchers are testing 234 medicines to help meet the special health care needs of children. The report highlights 15 medicines in development for respiratory disorders, including medicines for asthma, the leading serious chronic disease among children, which affects some 6.7 million American children.
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Developing countries: Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most common causes of death and morbidity in the world, killing an estimated 1.7 million people worldwide in 2009, according to the WHO.
[ii] The disease is far rarer in the United States, with 11,545 new cases reported in 2009.
[iii] Read more
Recent Advances in Resperatory Health
Each year, the FDA approves many "New Molecular Entities" (NMEs) and biological products for the treatment of diseases from the very common to the most rare, including new therapeutics for respiratory health disorders. Recently, the FDA approved the following treatments for diseases of the lungs and respiratory system:
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Glassia™ – alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor – approved – 7/1/2010
For the treatment of chronic augmentation and maintenance therapy in individuals with emphysema due to congenital deficiency of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor
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Dulera® – formoterol fumarate; mometasone furoate – approved – 6/22/2010
For the treatment of asthma in patients 12 years and older
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Prevnar 13™ – pneumococcal 13-valent vaccine – approved 2/24/2010
For the prevention of invasive disease caused by 13 different serotypes of Streptococcus pneumonia
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Agriful® – influenza virus vaccine – approved – 11/27/2009
For immunization against influenza virus subtypes A and B in adults.
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Hiberix® – haemophilus B conjugate vaccine (tetanus toxoid conjugate) – approved – 8/19/2009
For booster immunization for Haemophilus influenzae type B in children age 15 months through 4 years.
To view a list of new treatments for a variety of indications, visit the Recent FDA Approvals Page.
Innovation in Respiratory Health - Discoverers Awards
Each year, PhRMA honors pharmaceutical research scientists whose research and development of new medicines have greatly benefited humankind, and whose dedication and interest in improving the quality of life exemplify the best in the research industry with the Discoverers Award.
The Story of Prevnar® The 2005 Discoverer’s Award went to
Ronald J. Eby, Ph.D., Dace V. Madore, Ph.D., and Velupillai Puvanesarajah, Ph.D. for the creation of Prevnar, a new vaccine for pediatric pneumonia and ear infections worldwide were caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria. According to the World Health Organization, one million deaths worldwide in children 5 years and younger were linked to S. pneumoniae infection each year prior to approval of Prevnar in 2000. Since then it has all but wiped out invasive pneumoccal disease in young children, preventing 12,700 cases in the U.S. in 2002 alone. Read about the development of Prevnar and see a video with remarks by the research scientists.
The Story of Exosurf®The 1996 Discoverers Award went to
John A. Clements, M.D., for his contributions to the discovery of Exosurf, a therapy for infant respiratory distress syndrome. This therapy has helped save the lives of thousands of babies in this country and abroad. The impact of Exosurf and, later, other surfactant substitutes can be best shown in the startling decline of United States infant mortality after the introduction of Exosurf.
Click here for a list of all of the Discoverers Awards since 1987.
Resources
Medicines in Development DatabaseClick here to access our medicines in development database, which contains information about drugs currently in clinical trials or at FDA for review across all diseases.
Clinical Trials ResourcesClick here to visit our new Clinical Trials Resources page to learn more about ongoing clinical trials for cancer and many other diseases in the United States and around the world.
