December 17, 2007
Galvus®, a new oral treatment for type 2 diabetes, receives positive opinion following changes to European prescribing information
- Galvus recommended for use with a sulfonylurea at a 50 mg once-daily dose and with metformin or a thiazolidinedione at a 50 mg twice-daily dose
- Revised label includes additional measures proposed by Novartis to support liver safety of patients using Galvus for treatment of type 2 diabetes
- Galvus expected to be made available in the first EU countries starting in first half of 2008
December 13, 2007
Novartis launches strategic initiative to improve competitiveness in a dynamically changing healthcare environment
- "Forward" to simplify organizational structures, accelerate and decentralize decision-making processes, redesign the way Novartis operates and provide productivity gains
- Targeted initiatives to be implemented during 2008 and 2009 with an expected annual pre-tax cost savings goal of USD 1.6 billion in 2010
- Approximately 2,500 full-time positions (2.5% of Group total) planned to be reduced worldwide; many reductions to be achieved through normal staff fluctuation, vacancy management and social programs
- Restructuring charge of approximately USD 450 million to be taken in 2007 fourth quarter, to support implementation in a socially responsible manner
- Actions to help prepare Novartis Pharmaceuticals for a new growth cycle expected to emerge in second half of 2008
- Organizational structures will be streamlined in corporate functions as well as in the Pharmaceuticals and Consumer Health Divisions, particularly involving general management and administrative areas.
- In the Pharmaceuticals Division, the effectiveness of the worldwide sales forces will be improved with a more geographic-tailored marketing approach. Duplication between global, regional and local activities will be eliminated, while certain non-core support activities will be outsourced.
- The Consumer Health Division will remove organizational layers to streamline processes and eliminate duplications, while some product supply chains will be restructured to optimize capacity utilization. In certain business units, regional management structures will be modified in order to better focus resources on global or local activities.
- The Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research will focus on disease areas with significant new opportunities and review its research activities globally to take advantage of synergies among disease areas and locations to increase efficiency.
- Initiatives are underway to capture savings from the creation of Group-wide shared functions, including procurement and information technology, that will provide greater economies of scale and leverage opportunities in low-cost countries.
- Novartis will form a new cross-divisional operation to accelerate growth in small emerging markets, expanding the presence of all Novartis products in regions that include Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia and parts of Southeast Asia.
December 09, 2007
New data show Glivec® halts progression to advanced stages of life-threatening form of leukemia in sixth year of treatment
- Risk of disease progression continues to drop from the second year of treatment; no patients taking Glivec in sixth year progressed from initial disease phase
- Long-term survival trend may suggest many patients could approach normal life expectancy with continued treatment
December 02, 2007
Novartis further strengthens biologics capabilities in expansion of MorphoSys collaboration
- Collaboration efforts will focus on the discovery and optimization of antibodies against a significant number of molecular targets in a wide range of diseases
- Expanded agreement increases the ability of Novartis to generate therapeutic antibodies - the most successful and fastest growing class of biologics
- Biologics comprise 25% of Novartis pre-clinical research portfolio, and alliance supports Novartis commitment to being an industry leader in the discovery and development of innovative biologic therapies for patients
November 30, 2007
Novartis completes its fifth share repurchase program
- Basel, November 30, 2007- Novartis has completed its fifth share repurchase program initiated on July 24, 2007, and during which 63,173,000 Novartis shares were purchased for a total of CHF 4 billion. The average purchase price per share was CHF 63.32.
November 28, 2007
Tasigna® gains European approval for patients with a life-threatening form of leukemia who are resistant or intolerant to existing therapies
- Tasigna produced response in 49% of patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia resistant or intolerant to existing therapies
- Phase III trials launched to explore potential of Tasigna in newly diagnosed CML patients and also those with sub-optimal response to prior treatment
November 21, 2007
CIBA Vision, the eye care unit of Novartis, announces settlement of patent litigation with CooperVision, Inc.
- Companies to cross-license rights to contact lens innovations
November 19, 2007
United Kingdom and Germany suspend marketing and sale of Prexige® pending outcome of European regulatory review
- Suspensions in UK and Germany come as European Union regulators initiate so-called "Article 107 procedure" to review drug's benefit/risk profile
- Novartis to continue discussions with health authorities and believes Prexige is a valuable treatment option for appropriate patients with osteoarthritic pain
