AFRICA – While commemorating World Haemophilia Day (WHD) Pfizer said it is working to find innovative solutions for the treatment of patients living with haemophilia.

Pfizer’s goal to make sure patients living with haemophilia are seen, heard, and never forgotten as it continues to work tirelessly to find breakthrough solutions and therapeutic options to change their lives was reiterated at the media roundtable.

Haemophilia is a rare genetic disorder that causes the blood to take a long time to clot because of a deficiency in one of several blood clotting factors.

People with severe haemophilia often bleed spontaneously into their muscles or joints, or rarely into other critical closed spaces, such as the intracranial space, where bleeding can be fatal.

Pfizer’s Medical Director for Sub-Saharan Africa, Kodjo Soroh, has said that the firm has reinforced its efforts at advancing treatment for haemophilia and bridging gaps in access to care.

Soroh said that the firm’s commitment to equity and continued investment in haemophilia is evident in its more than 30 years of experience in developing therapies for haematological disorders, as it has a deep understanding of the significant challenges that people living with haemophilia continually face.

“We will continue to amplify and celebrate the work of the global haemophilia community, as we create awareness on the need for innovation to access haemophilia treatments,” Soroh said.

The Professor of Haematology and Blood Transfusion of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Akanmu Sulaimon, explained that haemophilia is almost exclusively found in males.

According to him, people with haemophilia are at risk of excessive and recurrent bleeding from modest injuries, which have the potential to be life-threatening.

World Federation of Haemophilia (WFH) said that more than 38,000 people worldwide were living with haemophilia B in 2021.

A senior lecturer at the Department of Child Health, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, Dr. Vivian Painstil, said that people living with haemophilia B face significant burden.

The Managing Director, Penn Comprehensive and Haemophilia Thrombosis Programme, Adam Cuker, said that the BENEGENE-2 data demonstrated the promise of the gene therapy candidate as a potential one-time option for people living with haemophilia B. For him, this is a means of reducing the clinical and treatment burden over the long term.

World Haemophilia Day (WHD) is celebrated annually on April 17, with a call to action for governments to improve access to treatment and care with an emphasis on better control and prevention of bleeds for all people with bleeding disorders.

The theme for this year’s event is: “Access for All: Prevention of bleeds as the global standard of care”.

In February this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted approval for a new haemophilia treatment co-developed by Sanofi and Sobi that has the potential to offer greater convenience for certain patients.

The treatment, known as Altuviiio, is indicated for both the prevention and treatment of bleeding episodes in adults and children with haemophilia A, which is the more prevalent type of this rare blood disorder.

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