A drugs manufacturer in Dubai has developed a cheaper version of a typically very expensive medication used to treat multiple sclerosis.
LIFEPharma, the pharmaceutical arm of VPS Healthcare, developed a generic version of the widely-used Fingolimod.
The development will bring relief to MS patients, most of whom's insurance does not cover the cost of the daily tablets.
Fingolimod typically costs patients about Dh13,000 per month. That is the price for one box, which contains 28 tablets. The same quantity of the generic drug costs only Dh8,775, reducing the treatment cost by around 33 per cent.
It will be the first time the generic drug is developed and introduced into the UAE market.
MS is a chronic autoimmune disorder that occurs when the immune system attacks the protective sheath surrounding the nerve fibres, causing communication issues between the brain and the body. This deterioration of the nerves can lead to weakness in the body, loss of mobility and loss of sight.
It is not contagious but its cause is not completely known. Most people have the disease diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50 but it can also appear in children.
Multiple sclerosis is particularly prevalent in the UAE, affecting 64 per 100,000 people in Abu Dhabi alone - more than twice the World Health Organisation's global prevalence estimate of 30 per 100,000.
Fingolimod, sold under the brand name Gilenya, does not cure MS but it can slow the progression of the degenerative disease. MS treatments are typically lifelong and expensive, particularly if not covered by insurance.
For example, an MS patient would require 13 boxes of Fingolimod a year which is around Dh156,000 per year. According to the latest market research data available, 2,816 boxes of Fingolimod were sold in the UAE in 2020.
“We are proud to have launched the first generic version of Fingolimod in the UAE. The value of our generic Fingolimod runs deep," Dr Magdy Fahmy, chief executive of LIFEPharma, said.
"This would improve the quality of life of the people and reduce the burden of the treatment cost."
LIFEPharma is producing Fingolimod in its manufacturing plant in Dubai for local use and to export to other countries in the Gulf and Middle East.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 2
Rashford 28', Martial 72'
Watford 1
Doucoure 90'
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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