Further 100 Million Euros Allocated to Netherlands-Based R&D Targeting the Early Diagnosis and Treatment of Disease

September 2nd, 2009 MAIDENHEAD, England - - Study Published in Rheumatology Underscores the Need for Early and Aggressive Treatment to Maintain Work Productivity Patients receiving Enbrel(R) (etanercept) in combination with methotrexate for early RA are more likely to continue working, according to the COMET study published today in Rheumatology. One year results from the COMET study - which compared the impact of methotrexate alone with methotrexate in combination with Enbrel on work productivity - showed that active early RA patients receiving the Enbrel-methotrexate combination were nearly three times less likely to stop working compared to patients receiving methotrexate alone.

August 31st, 2009 WILMINGTON, Delaware - According to a new market research report, 'Global Autoimmune Treatment Market (2009-2014)', published by MarketsandMarkets ( www.marketsandmarkets.com), the global autoimmune treatment market is expected to be worth US$68.81 billion by 2014, with an estimated CAGR of 12.7% from 2009 to 2014. The North American market is expected to account for nearly 42% of the total revenues.

August 16th, 2009 LEIDEN, The Netherlands - A new consortium has been formed to boost drug development for the treatment of two deadly diseases, African sleeping sickness and Leishmaniasis, which affect millions of people worldwide. A total budget of nearly 3.6 million euros has been allocated over the next 4 years, to develop effective drugs for these diseases.

August 3rd, 2009 EINDHOVEN, The Netherlands - With today's final approval of a research project into prostate cancer, the Dutch CTMM (Center for Translational Molecular Medicine) today announced the successful completion of 265 million euro funding for translational (bench-to-bedside) medical research, making CTMM one of the largest public-private partnerships in the world. This pivotal point in the organisation's development firmly positions the Netherlands as one of the world's leading destinations for translational biomedical research.

July 12th, 2009 VIENNA - - Attitudinal and Behavioural Barriers(1) - Combined with Inability to Recognize Disease Symptoms(1) - Contribute to Delay in Diagnosis and Treatment A new study presented today at a major International medical meeting reveals that approximately two-thirds of physicians in the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain and Germany agree that Alzheimer's disease (AD) is under-diagnosed(1) and under-treated,(1) and explains how physicians, carers and the general population share responsibility in the issue. Based on these results, the Steering Committee overseeing the study recommends the development of programmes to help physicians meet the specific challenges associated with diagnosing such a devastating disease, and educational tools for physicians and the general population to help them spot the early signs of AD.

June 10th, 2009 LONDON - Mild Alzheimer's Patients Continue to be Denied Treatment Eisai Limited, the licence holder of Aricept(R) (donepezil hydrochloride) and Pfizer Limited, its co-promotion partner, have been notified by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) of their decision to continue to deny vulnerable patients the use of anti-cholinergic medicines in the treatment of mild Alzheimer's disease. At the recent Appraisal Committee meeting it was recognised that the current model contained four significant errors, and that NICE had failed to undertake appropriate checks of their calculations in three separate areas.

June 7th, 2009 PARIS - Survey Reveals Most Europeans Know so Little About Parkinson's They Would be Unlikely to Recognise its Early Symptoms and See Their Doctor for Prompt Diagnosis and Treatment The European Parkinson's Disease Association (EPDA) announces the launch today of multiple language versions of its pan-European awareness campaign, Life with Parkinson's at the International Congress of Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders. The campaign is designed to improve understanding of all aspects of Parkinson's among a wide range of audiences including people with Parkinson's, their families and friends, healthcare professionals and policy makers, so that symptoms are recognised and medical advice is sought as early as possible.

April 5th, 2009 LEIDEN, The Netherlands - The Dutch Orphan Disease Registry Consortium is set up in order to build a disease registry framework to collect information on rare diseases, encourage drug development and optimize patient care. The consortium focuses on inborn errors of metabolism as target group of diseases.

March 30th, 2009 LONDON - A third of HIV-infected persons in UK do not present for screening and treatment until late in infection increasing morbidity and decreasing their quality of life.(1,2,3) Almost three decades after the discovery of HIV/AIDS, and despite big medical advances, there are still a significant number of HIV-infected persons who present late in the disease course and with severe immunosuppression. This often results in less than optimal outcomes, with increased mortality, morbidity and decreased quality of life.(2,3) In Europe 15 to 38 % of those infected with HIV do not present for testing until late in infection, with the UK sitting at the higher end of that bracket with 33% of all patients receiving their diagnosis when their CD4 cell count was less than 200/mm3, and/or disease progressed to clinical AIDS during the year of diagnosis.(1,4) To address this issue, leading HIV experts from across Europe convened today at a meeting titled "Late Presentation for HIV Treatment in Europe" sponsored by Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.

March 15th, 2009 NIEUWEGEIN, The Netherlands - As of 13 March 2009, the Supervisory Board has allocated options to the members of the Board of Management: 40,000 options to Mr Theo Bruijninckx, 30,000 options to Mr Ruud Jacobs and 30,000 options to Mr Romeo Malizia. The options are allocated in accordance with the options regulations as determined during the Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders on 26 October 2006.

April 1st, 2009 LONDON - Soccer ace David Beckham has topped the list of football high-earners. According to French football website France Football, the 33-year-old England midfielder topped the high earners with the total income of 32.4 million euros, reports The Mirror.

February 8th, 2009 AMSTERDAM - Male victims of domestic abuse in the Netherlands can seek refuge in special shelters that are due to open Tuesday, the health ministry said Monday. The four biggest cities - Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht - each have received 200,000 euros ($255,920) to provide safe havens for abused men, the ministry said.

March 3rd, 2009 CHANDIGARH - Bringing global management education to the doorsteps of Indian students, the Netherlands-based Wittenborg University (WU) is planning to open its learning centres in India in the next few months. While making this announcement, WU director of International projects P.D.

January 26th, 2009 AMSTERDAM - Shares of Royal Philips Electronics rose by 8.25 percent Monday, despite its publication of disappointing fourth quarter results. At closing time Monday, Philips stock was trading at 13.645 euros ($17.72) per share.

May 14th, 2009 BRUSSELS - Foreign direct investment (FDI) between India and the European Union (EU) declined sharply in 2008 amidst the global economic slump, the 27-member bloc's statistical office said Thursday. FDI from India into the EU as a whole dropped from 10 billion euros ($ 13.5 billion) in 2007 to 2.4 billion euros ($3.2 billion) in 2008, the Eurostat report said.

May 9th, 2009 BREMEN - Croatian footballer Ivan Klasnic is calling 64 players and coaches as witnesses as he seeks damages of more than 1 million euros ($1.35 million) in a medical dispute with his former club Werder Bremen. Der Spiegel magazine reported that Germany internationals Torsten Frings, Miroslav Klose and Tim Borowski - all former team-mates at Bremen - are among those Klasnic wants to give evidence.

March 23rd, 2009 AMSTERDAM - Dutch ING Bank has asked its top 1,200 managers not to accept their bonuses for the year 2008. ING's Jan Hommen, who will formally be appointed as chief executive officer in April, was quoted in Dutch daily newspaper Volkskrant Monday as saying that many managers are prepared not to accept their bonus.

July 31st, 2009 Dodd has prostate cancerWASHINGTON — Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., has been diagnosed with an early stage of prostate cancer and intends to have surgery early in August, his office said Friday.

May 10th, 2009 PRAGUE - The European Union (EU) is planning to hold its first ever summit with Pakistan in June this year. According to the sources privy to the Czech presidency, the EU wants to help strengthen the civilian government in Pakistan by showing strong support on the highest level.

April 8th, 2009 TORONTO - Use of oral contraceptives was linked to an increased risk of lupus, particularly among women who recently started taking them, according to a large population based study. The ratio of women to men with the autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is nine to one and the incidence increases after puberty.