Roche have filed licence applications for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in the USA and the European Union with their innovative arthritis treatment drug, Actemra (tocilizumab).

The product is already available in Japan for patients with a rare auto-immume condition known as Castleman’s disease and following sucessfull clinical trials has now been approved for treatment there of rheumatoid arthritis and also for juvenile idiopathic arthritis and systemic-onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis which affect children.

Actemra is the first of a new class of drug with a novel mechanism of action that brings new hope to rheumatoid arthritis sufferers. The drug works by suppressing the activity of IL-6, an important trigger of the inflammatory process and thereby reducing inflammation of the affected joints and relieves the systemic effects of rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a progressive autoimmune disease. The inflammation causes swelling of the joints and reduced functionalityas well as stiffness and swelling and significan pain and causes inflammation of the membrane lining in the joints. The condition eventually leads to irreversible disability from joint degradation. Other symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include anaemia, osteoporosis, shortened life expectancy and also general fatigue. around 50% of effected patients can no longer work or function properly after 10 years.

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis is a severe disease with unknown cause associated with symptoms in joints occurring in young children. Patients have many similarities to rheumatoid arthritis accompanied by fever.

For further information about the Actemra product contact Roche Group

Australian Pharmaceutical Industries Selects JDA Software to Drive Profitability and Support its Growth and Expansion Objectives . Leading Health and Beauty Retailer Expects Increased Sales and Reduced Stock Loss with JDA Software’s Merchandise Management System
 
Sydney and Scottsdale, Ariz. – March 12, 2008 – JDA® Software Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: JDAS) today announced that Australian Pharmaceutical Industries (API), one of Australia’s leading health and beauty companies, has implemented JDA’s Merchandise Management System-I (MMS®) to optimize its core merchandising system and support its strategic expansion plan. Australian Pharmaceutical operates more than 290 retail stores and pharmacies under the well-known brands Priceline and Priceline Pharmacy.

JDA Software was selected for its superior functionality to replace the retailer’s in-house merchandise system, which had limitations within its allocation, store grades, ranging and replenishment functionality. Australian Pharmaceutical needed a new solution that would support its strategic business objectives for opening additional stores and supporting more franchise pharmacies, which was not possible with the old system.

“Our original system did not support our current business and could not be enhanced. JDA’s Merchandise Management System provides the core building block of what we need to manage our business. It will also allow us to further implement enhancements to drive profitability, something that the in-house system could not provide,” said Simon Kilner, IT manager at Australian Pharmaceutical.

Australian Pharmaceutical implemented Merchandise Management as its primary system and is integrating it with existing best-of-breed solutions that support other parts of the business. Implementation was achieved in 15 months from assembling the project team to go-live. Australian Pharmaceutical expects to realize a sales increase brought about by better availability of products for the consumers, along with improved inventory efficiencies due to the new JDA Software solution. 

JDA Software and Australian Pharmaceutical conducted a series of Business Process Analysis sessions to discover how business processes would be addressed by the software. Kilner explained, “The process showed a good match between the system and the business requirement and identified a potential modification list. Key documents like systems reference guides and user reference guides were produced while extensive training and change management took place to ensure success for users.”

“We are interested in implementing more JDA products, now that the core merchandise systems have been implemented. We are considering incorporating JDA’s solutions for merchandise planning, analysis and trade event management,” added Kilner.

“JDA’s Merchandise Management solution enables companies to respond quickly to changes in the competitive environment and to achieve operational efficiencies, which will allow the company to profitably grow and expand. We are proud to support Australian Pharmaceutical Industries’ business objectives and provide valuable solutions that meet and exceed the needs and expectations of the industry,” said Rod Talbot, JDA Software regional vice president, Asia Pacific.