(AOF) – Pfizer and Opko Health Inc. today announced that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Ngenla (somatrogon-ghla), a once-daily human growth hormone analog. week, indicated for the treatment of children aged three years and over who show growth retardation due to insufficient secretion of endogenous growth hormone. Ngenla is expected to be available for prescription in the United States in August 2023.
Growth hormone deficiency is a rare disease characterized by insufficient secretion of somatropin, the growth hormone, by the pituitary gland, which affects approximately one in 4,000 to 10,000 children. If left untreated, children will show permanent growth retardation, very low height in adulthood and delayed puberty. Children with GHD may also experience challenges related to their physical health and mental well-being.
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Loss of speed in European research
European research is losing ground to American and Chinese research. In twenty years, Europe’s share has fallen from 41% to 31% in global R&D. China’s share jumped from 1% to 8%. As for the United States, which supplanted Europe, in 2001 it devoted only 2 billion euros per year more than Europe to R&D, whereas now this gap has reached 25 billion! Some experts accuse the European authorities of not having deployed effective policies. The financing of pharmaceutical research should therefore have been better targeted via the “Horizon 2020” programme. France only comes in eighteenth position in European funding despite the quality of its research. Conversely, the United States concentrates funding on Boston and a few centers of excellence.