To all:
Another release re: AVONEX
> > >Biogen Commends National Multiple Sclerosis Society For Taking Strong Stance On Early Drug Treatment For People With MS
PR Newswire, Monday, October 19, 1998 at 13:35
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Biogen, Inc. (NASDAQ:BGEN) said
today that it "enthusiastically supports" a recommendation by the National
Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) urging people with relapsing forms of MS to
begin drug therapy as soon as possible after diagnosis to reduce future
disability and improve their quality of life. The recommendation, which
issued Friday, is the first time the NMSS has endorsed drug therapy.
Previously, the NMSS has refrained from making treatment recommendations.
Jim Tobin, Biogen's Chief Executive Officer, said, "Biogen
enthusiastically supports the NMSS in taking this important step forward on
behalf of people with MS. Studies have shown that early treatment with drugs
like AVONEX(R) (Interferon beta-1a) plays a significant role in the management
of MS. We urge patients who are not yet on therapy to talk to their
physicians as soon as possible about the benefits of drug therapy in the
management of their disease."
Biogen's AVONEX(R) is the world's leading treatment for patients with
relapsing forms of MS. It is the only drug approved both to slow the
progression of the disease and the frequency of exacerbations. More than
50,000 people with MS in more than 20 countries currently take AVONEX(R),
which is administered once a week by intramuscular injection.
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling, disease of the central
nervous system, affecting more than 300,000 people in the U.S. alone. The
disease primarily affects women between the ages of 20 and 40. Symptoms may
be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, including paralysis or loss
of vision.
The most common side effects associated with AVONEX(R) treatment are flu-
like symptoms, muscle ache, fever, chills and asthenia (weakness). AVONEX(R)
should be used with caution in patients with depression and in patients with
seizure disorder. AVONEX(R) should not be used by pregnant women. Patients
with cardiac disease should be closely monitored. Routine periodic blood
chemistry and hematology tests are recommended during treatment with
AVONEX(R).
Biogen, Inc., headquartered in Cambridge, MA, is a biopharmaceutical
company principally engaged in discovering and developing drugs for human
healthcare through genetic engineering. The Company's revenues are generated
from the worldwide sales of AVONEX(R) (Interferon beta-1a) for treatment of
relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis, and from the worldwide sales by
licensees of a number of products, including alpha interferon, hepatitis B
vaccines and diagnostic products. Biogen's research and development
activities are focused on novel products for multiple sclerosis, inflammatory,
respiratory, kidney and cardiovascular diseases and in developmental biology
and gene therapy. For copies of press releases and additional information
about the Company, please consult Biogen's Homepage on the World Wide Web at
biogen.com.
SOURCE Biogen, Inc.
-0- 10/19/98
/EDITORS' ADVISORY: ATTENTION HEALTH BROADCAST PRODUCERS/REPORTERS:
A MEDICAL NEWS SPECIAL B-ROLL SPECIAL PACKAGE.
FEED DATE: TODAY, MONDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1998
FEED TIME: 2:00PM -- 2:30PM (EASTERN), TELSTAR 4 (C-BAND), TRANSPONDER 6,
DUAL AUDIO 6.2/6.8/
/CONTACT: Kathryn R. Bloom, Director of Communications, 617-679-2851, or
Investors, Elizabeth Woo, Manager of Investor Relations, 617-679-2812, both of
Biogen, Inc./ < < <
Steve |
