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Generating Impact
Jutta Reinhard-Rupp, Chair of the Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium Board and Head of the Global Health Institute at Merck, looks back at the Consortium’s journey to date in bridging the treatment gap for preschool-age children infected with schistosomiasis.
The journey of the Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium has been fascinating with its successes and challenges throughout the last 10 years. The initial idea to address the unmet medical needs of the very young children suffering from schistosomiasis materialized into our Consortium of international public-private partners, and into a full development program which has delivered a potential new pediatric treatment option.
I am personally extremely proud of all the collaborative work done so far. We have established a new formulation and the associated drug substance/product manufacturing processes, we have clarified the preclinical and clinical development pathway to ensure safety and efficacy of the drug, and we have identified the regulatory approach to potentially speed-up approval in endemic countries.
But our work is not over yet! The consolidation of the registration file for submission is our priority, and the ongoing identification of a new mechanism to ensure equitable and sustainable access to the new medication is a prerequisite for success. Finally, the implementation research in the field to pave the way for the large-scale delivery of the treatment is one of the key pillars of the program.
With these, the finish line is certainly approaching. Together with our colleagues, partners, funders and experts, we will continue to join forces to deliver on our commitment to all the young patients affected by schistosomiasis, as soon as possible.