Schering-Plough announces one million milestone for Remicade

Schering-Plough, along with Centocor and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma, has announced that an estimated one million patients have now been treated with Remicade (infliximab).

The pharmaceutical companies report that their anti-tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha therapy has now been used to treat more patients worldwide than all other anti-TNF alpha agents combined.

J Spiegel, chief medical officer and senior vice-president at Schering-Plough Research Institute, confirmed that Remicade had “transformed” the treatment offered to patients with inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.

“Schering-Plough is committed to bringing the benefits of Remicade, with its proven efficacy and rapid onset of action, to relieve the suffering of patients with these chronic inflammatory conditions.”

Remicade was first approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1998 when it was indicated for the treatment of acute moderate to severe Crohn’s disease.

Since then the drug has seen 15 FDA approvals for new indications spanning across a series of inflammatory diseases.

Earlier this year Schering-Plough announced European commission approval for a new indication of Remicade. Following this revised labelling, the compound can be used to treat severe, active Crohn’s disease in younger patients.