Amgen And The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations Launch UPLIFT Innovation Challenge

Rhea-AI Summary

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) has partnered with the International Federation of Psoriasis Associations to launch the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge, aimed at improving health outcomes for individuals with psoriatic disease. Applicants can submit innovative ideas by August 30, 2021, for a chance to receive a grant of $25,000 USD. This initiative responds to findings from the 2020 UPLIFT survey, which highlighted significant gaps in treatment and patient-provider communication. Notably, it found only 50% of those with psoriatic arthritis saw a healthcare provider within the past year.

Positive

• Launch of UPLIFT Innovation Challenge to address significant unmet needs in psoriatic disease treatment.
• Opportunity for patient organizations to receive $25,000 USD grant for innovative solutions.
• Data from UPLIFT survey indicates potential for improved patient-provider engagement.

Negative

• Only 50% of surveyed individuals with psoriatic arthritis visited a healthcare provider in the past year, indicating a serious gap in treatment.
• A majority (74%) perceived their disease as moderate to severe despite 83% receiving treatment, suggesting a disconnect in care.

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif., July 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN), in partnership with the International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA), announced the launch of the Understanding Psoriatic Disease Leveraging Insights for Treatment (UPLIFT) Innovation Challenge, a new global initiative that aims to make a big impact within the psoriatic disease community by fostering the development of actionable solutions to address a challenge that people living with psoriatic disease and healthcare providers continue to face. Applicants are invited to submit innovative ideas that address the challenge question: "How can we unite people living with psoriatic disease and their healthcare providers to achieve optimal health outcomes?"

Amgen and IFPA created the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge in response to the undertreatment and strong disconnect between patients' perceptions and standard measures of disease severity documented in the 2020 UPLIFT survey. Data from UPLIFT was presented virtually during the 6th World Psoriasis & Psoriatic Arthritis Conference (WPPAC), June 30 - July 3, 2021.

The challenge is open to all local, regional and national psoriasis- and psoriatic arthritis-focused patient organizations worldwide. Entrants must submit applications by 23:59 EDT on Monday, August 30, 2021, and rules and additional details are available at www.UPLIFTInnovationChallenge.com. The successful applicant will receive a one-time donation or grant of $25,000 USD (or equivalent in local currency)¹ to support the execution of their proposed solution.

"Despite tremendous advances in recent years, significant areas of unmet need remain for people living with psoriatic disease," said Frida Dunger Johnsson, executive director, IFPA. "Patient organizations are uniquely positioned to develop and implement solutions that address these needs as we are on the front lines, constantly working to help improve the lives of people with psoriatic disease. We chose to partner with Amgen on the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge as a global opportunity fitting to the IFPA mission to improve the lives of all people living with psoriatic disease."

UPLIFT Survey Results at WPPAC
The UPLIFT survey was designed to measure the effects of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis on people living with these conditions. The data recently presented at WPPAC affirmed and refined the findings of a previous survey conducted in 2012, the Multinational Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (MAPP) survey. In a comparison of UPLIFT and MAPP survey findings (abstract ID: 35700), fewer people with psoriatic arthritis reported seeing a healthcare provider for their disease in the past year (50% in UPLIFT vs. 83% in MAPP) and a majority (74%) surveyed in UPLIFT perceived their disease as moderate-to-severe despite 83% receiving treatment.

"Nearly a decade after the MAPP survey, during which more treatments have become available, the UPLIFT survey suggests unmet needs in patient care persist. It also revealed an ongoing disconnect between patients' perceptions of their disease severity and how healthcare providers categorize their disease using common measures of disease severity," said Darryl Sleep, M.D., senior vice president, global medical, and chief medical officer at Amgen. "With these findings in mind, we are proud to launch the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge with IFPA to encourage much-needed dialogue and support the development of potential solutions to help address the gaps in the treatment journey for this community."

Two additional abstracts (abstract IDs: 35706 and 35218) reported outcomes from subsets of UPLIFT data from participants in five European countries: the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Of the 2,006 European UPLIFT respondents, 72% of people had psoriasis only, 25% had both psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis and 3% had psoriatic arthritis only. Findings included:

• A majority (62%) of people with psoriasis with limited skin involvement (BSA ≤3%) characterized their current disease as moderate or severe, and 79% had psoriasis in at least one special area, such as the scalp, face, nail, palms or soles.
• While 84% of Europeans with psoriatic arthritis surveyed reported receiving treatment, 72% characterized their current disease as moderate-to-severe and substantial disease burden. Further, 52% of Europeans with psoriatic arthritis surveyed had not seen a healthcare provider for their disease in the past year.

About the UPLIFT Survey
In 2020, Amgen conducted the global Understanding Psoriatic Disease Leveraging Insights for Treatment (UPLIFT) survey exploring the evolution of attitudes and behaviors of 3,806 people living with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, 473 dermatologists and 450 rheumatologists in eight countries in North America, Europe and Asia. The survey was conducted in 2020 and was overseen by an academic steering committee of thought-leaders in dermatology and rheumatology. The survey builds upon findings from the 2012 Multinational Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (MAPP) survey, a first-of-its-kind study conducted by Celgene that looked in-depth at the effect of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis on people living with these conditions. Additional findings from UPLIFT can be accessed on the WPPAC website or at www.UPLIFTInnovationChallenge.com.

Amgen Inflammation
Amgen brings therapies to millions of people with inflammatory diseases, with a focus on serving unmet patient needs. For those with debilitating moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, ankylosing spondylitis, asthma, and other chronic conditions, the suffering and needs are severe. Complex diseases of inflammation have defied simple solutions, and the breadth of inflammatory disease and the burden patients bear is not well understood.

For more than two decades, Amgen has been committed to advancing the science and the understanding around inflammation to address the unmet patient needs that exist and expanding our portfolio. We lead with science through discovery research that is disease-agnostic and biology-first, modality-second. In doing so, we have introduced and evolved novel therapies that have changed the lives of patients.

Our commitment to patients is reflected not only in where we have succeeded, but in where we have failed and opened new doors. Throughout, we have remained dedicated to the principle of leading with science, pursuing where pathways and promising discoveries in inflammation take us, and not relenting until innovative solutions for patients are found. It's a commitment that extends beyond introducing novel therapies.

About Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.

Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.

For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow us on www.twitter.com/amgen.

About The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations
The International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA) is a non-profit organization uniting national and regional psoriasis associations from around the world. Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis affect millions of people across the world. This is a serious global health challenge, with a range of unmet needs. People with psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis may struggle to get a correct diagnosis or adequate treatment, have limited access to care or face persistent stigma and discrimination. Since the organization's founding in 1971, IFPA has worked to resolve these challenges facing the international psoriasis community.

For more information, visit https://ifpa-pso.com/ and follow IFPA on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) @psoriasisIFPA.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the current expectations and beliefs of Amgen. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements, including any statements on the outcome, benefits and synergies of collaborations, or potential collaborations, with any other company (including BeiGene, Ltd. or any collaboration to manufacture therapeutic antibodies against COVID-19), the performance of Otezla^® (apremilast) (including anticipated Otezla sales growth and the timing of non-GAAP EPS accretion), or the Five Prime Therapeutics, Inc. acquisition, as well as estimates of revenues, operating margins, capital expenditures, cash, other financial metrics, expected legal, arbitration, political, regulatory or clinical results or practices, customer and prescriber patterns or practices, reimbursement activities and outcomes, effects of pandemics or other widespread health problems such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on our business, outcomes, progress, or effects relating to studies of Otezla as a potential treatment for COVID-19, and other such estimates and results. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, including those discussed below and more fully described in the Securities and Exchange Commission reports filed by Amgen, including our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent periodic reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. Unless otherwise noted, Amgen is providing this information as of the date of this news release and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual results may differ materially from those we project. Our results may be affected by our ability to successfully market both new and existing products domestically and internationally, clinical and regulatory developments involving current and future products, sales growth of recently launched products, competition from other products including biosimilars, difficulties or delays in manufacturing our products and global economic conditions. In addition, sales of our products are affected by pricing pressure, political and public scrutiny and reimbursement policies imposed by third-party payers, including governments, private insurance plans and managed care providers and may be affected by regulatory, clinical and guideline developments and domestic and international trends toward managed care and healthcare cost containment. Furthermore, our research, testing, pricing, marketing and other operations are subject to extensive regulation by domestic and foreign government regulatory authorities. We or others could identify safety, side effects or manufacturing problems with our products, including our devices, after they are on the market. Our business may be impacted by government investigations, litigation and product liability claims. In addition, our business may be impacted by the adoption of new tax legislation or exposure to additional tax liabilities. If we fail to meet the compliance obligations in the corporate integrity agreement between us and the U.S. government, we could become subject to significant sanctions. Further, while we routinely obtain patents for our products and technology, the protection offered by our patents and patent applications may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented by our competitors, or we may fail to prevail in present and future intellectual property litigation. We perform a substantial amount of our commercial manufacturing activities at a few key facilities, including in Puerto Rico, and also depend on third parties for a portion of our manufacturing activities, and limits on supply may constrain sales of certain of our current products and product candidate development. An outbreak of disease or similar public health threat, such as COVID-19, and the public and governmental effort to mitigate against the spread of such disease, could have a significant adverse effect on the supply of materials for our manufacturing activities, the distribution of our products, the commercialization of our product candidates, and our clinical trial operations, and any such events may have a material adverse effect on our product development, product sales, business and results of operations. We rely on collaborations with third parties for the development of some of our product candidates and for the commercialization and sales of some of our commercial products. In addition, we compete with other companies with respect to many of our marketed products as well as for the discovery and development of new products. Discovery or identification of new product candidates or development of new indications for existing products cannot be guaranteed and movement from concept to product is uncertain; consequently, there can be no guarantee that any particular product candidate or development of a new indication for an existing product will be successful and become a commercial product. Further, some raw materials, medical devices and component parts for our products are supplied by sole third-party suppliers. Certain of our distributors, customers and payers have substantial purchasing leverage in their dealings with us. The discovery of significant problems with a product similar to one of our products that implicate an entire class of products could have a material adverse effect on sales of the affected products and on our business and results of operations. Our efforts to collaborate with or acquire other companies, products or technology, and to integrate the operations of companies or to support the products or technology we have acquired, may not be successful. A breakdown, cyberattack or information security breach could compromise the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our systems and our data. Our stock price is volatile and may be affected by a number of events. Global economic conditions may magnify certain risks that affect our business. Our business performance could affect or limit the ability of our Board of Directors to declare a dividend or our ability to pay a dividend or repurchase our common stock. We may not be able to access the capital and credit markets on terms that are favorable to us, or at all.

CONTACT: Amgen, Thousand Oaks 
Michael Strapazon, 805-313-5553 (Media)
Megan Fox, 805-447-1423 (Media)
Arvind Sood, 805-447-1060 (Investors)

¹ Amgen exercises diligence in ensuring compliance with local law and policy. All patient organizations are strongly encouraged to consult country specific law and compliance guidance before applying as certain countries are unable to receive these types of donations and grants based on local law or policy. Your submission may be impacted by these laws at any time throughout the application process.  

 

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SOURCE Amgen

FAQ

What is the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge by Amgen?

The UPLIFT Innovation Challenge is a global initiative launched by Amgen in collaboration with the International Federation of Psoriasis Associations to encourage innovative solutions for improving health outcomes in psoriatic disease.

When is the deadline to apply for the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge?

The application deadline for the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge is August 30, 2021.

What grant amount can winners of the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge receive?

Winners of the UPLIFT Innovation Challenge can receive a grant of $25,000 USD.

What did the UPLIFT survey reveal about patient care in psoriatic disease?

The UPLIFT survey revealed that only 50% of individuals with psoriatic arthritis saw a healthcare provider in the past year, indicating significant gaps in care and treatment.

What percentage of participants in the UPLIFT survey felt their disease was moderate to severe?

In the UPLIFT survey, 74% of participants perceived their psoriatic disease as moderate to severe.