Shire: Standing Up For Patients

Shire has come a long way from a small pharmaceutical start-up in the UK selling calcium supplements for people with osteoporosis. Now, after its $32bn acquisition of Baxalta last year, it is the largest global biotech focused on rare diseases.“Shire is now the global leader in rare diseases and highly specialized conditions,” saysPerry Sternberg, EVP and Head of US Commercial. “We have been on a four-year journey since Flemming Ørnskov came on as CEO, a real transformation. As a physician, he wanted to focus on innovation and, in his mind, the greatest innovation was in the rare disease area. There are thousands of rare diseases out there and most do not have any thera pies at all, so the patient need is huge. The model has paid off for Shire and we continue to go into areas where no other companies work, delivering amazing innovation to patients that suffer from rare diseases.”In common with many other pharmaceutical companies, Shire is focused on the patient but Shire ’s approach is unique, says Sternberg. “We’re really agnostic about where our innovation comes from because, at the end of the day, we are focused on that rare patient. At every leadership meeting, we start by hearing from a patient suffering from a rare condition and you are left hoping and p raying that we can come up with a therapy to help that patient, or their child if they are a parent.”For Sternberg, who is speaking ahead of theeyeforpharma Philadelphia conference in April, it all star...
Source: EyeForPharma - Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Source Type: news