Otsuka’s philosophy is to create unique and innovative products that address unmet medical needs.

New tuberculosis (TB) compounds are discovered by Otsuka’s researchers in Tokushima, Japan, and are then advanced for clinical development.

In 2002, Otsuka’s researchers discovered a new compound that was effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and it took 12 years of dedicated hard work to take the compound through clinical development and achieve the first marketing approval.

The last TB medicines had been developed about 50 years ago, and no medicine at the time of the compound’s trial had ever been approved specifically for multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB). Significant innovative capacity building was necessary in order to carry out a high-quality clinical trial.

Increasing local capacity was key in areas such as data safety and monitoring, trial conduct, and laboratory services. Such activities strengthen the local health system and can benefit patients well beyond the duration of the trial.

You can learn more about Otsuka’s capacity building programme for an MDR-TB clinical trial in an article published by the World Health Organization’s Bulletin, available here.1

Since 2005, Otsuka has been one of the leading private sector funders in TB drug development.2

The company’s global TB franchise includes new drugs, treatment monitoring tools, paediatric innovations, diagnostics, and public health programmes that provide a comprehensive approach to fighting TB.

References

1. Tupasi et al. Building clinical trial capacity to develop a new treatment for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2016;94(2):147-152.
2. Based on Treatment Action Group, Reports on Tuberculosis Research Funding Trends, issues from 2006 until 2019 (accessed 02 December 2020). All reports available at: https://www.treatmentactiongroup.org/resources/tbrd-report/

Information current as of 26-10-2022
Reference ONP-COP-2200002