Novartis has delivered 4.7 million treatments of its life-saving anti-malaria medicine, Coartemâ, to the United Republic of Tanzania, an African country where malaria is the leading cause of death in both children and adults. This delivery is part of a larger global effort to provide access to Coartem without profit to patients living in malaria-endemic countries.
Malaria affects between 300 million to 500 million people each year and kills more than one million people every year. The company urges governments, companies and other organizations to work together to broaden access and remove cultural or educational hindrances to treatment.
"Malaria claims the life of one child in Africa every 30 seconds - a staggering number. We have made the commitment to ensure that those who need treatment for malaria will have access to Coartem," said Dr Daniel Vasella, Chairman and CEO of Novartis AG. "Our involvement in the fight against malaria is at the heart of our mission of caring and curing. With even greater collaboration by governments and private groups, many more lives could be saved."
Novartis delivered 62 million treatments of Coartem in 2006, without profit, to the public sector of malaria-endemic countries in Africa, a seven-fold increase from the previous year. These treatments contributed to saving an estimated 200 000 lives that would have otherwise been lost to malaria. In 2007, Novartis has the capacity to produce 100 million treatments if timely orders are received.
Coartem is the first pre-qualified, fixed-dose artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) with cure rates of up to 95 per cent, even in areas of multi-drug resistance.
Tanzania designated Coartem as first-line therapy in its national malaria-control guidelines in 2004. During 2006 when the new treatment policy with Coartem was implemented in the country, Novartis delivered more than 8 million Coartem treatments to Tanzania. According to health authorities, malaria infects up to 18 million people in Tanzania every year. Novartis has partnered with the Tanzanian government and other organizations to expand access to this life-saving treatment.
Novartis is also working with the Medicines for Malaria Venture, a nonprofit foundation based in Geneva, to develop a new paediatric formulation of Coartem. The new formulation is expected to be introduce in 2008.