Respiratory and inflammation
Our strategic objective
We aim to build on our strong position in asthma treatment through the growth of key products, particularly Symbicort, with new indications and market launches as well as developing novel approaches to other areas of inflammatory disease such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and rheumatology.
- Symbicort sales over $2 billion, up 22%.
- Symbicort Rapihaler (pMDI) licensed for long-term maintenance treatment of asthma in the US. Submissions made for use in COPD and paediatric asthma.
- Outside the US, Symbicort Turbuhaler SMART now approved for use in managing asthma in over 90 countries.
- Symbicort Turbuhaler now approved in COPD in over 80 countries.
- The Joint Advisory Committee of the FDA concluded that the benefits of Symbicort outweigh the risks in adult and adolescent asthma patients.
- Continued growth for Pulmicort with sales of $1.49 billion.
- Settlement of AstraZeneca’s Pulmicort Respules patent infringement litigation against Teva including an exclusive licence to Teva to sell generic Pulmicort Respules from 15 December 2009 with significant royalties for AstraZeneca.
Symbicort Turbuhaler (budesonide/formoterol in a dry powder inhaler) is a combination of an inhaled corticosteroid and a fast onset, long-acting bronchodilator for the treatment of asthma and COPD.
Symbicort SMART is licensed for maintenance therapy as well as for maintenance and reliever therapy in persistent asthma.
Symbicort Rapihaler (pMDI) (budesonide/formoterol in a pressurised metered-dose inhaler) for the maintenance treatment of asthma.
Pulmicort (budesonide) is a corticosteroid anti-inflammatory inhalation drug that helps prevent symptoms and improves the control of asthma.
Pulmicort Respules (budesonide inhalation suspension) is the first and only nebulised corticosteroid in the US for the treatment of asthma in children as young as 12 months.
Rhinocort (budesonide) is a nasal steroid treatment for allergic rhinitis (hay fever), perennial rhinitis and nasal polyps.
Oxis (formoterol) is a fast onset, long-acting beta-agonist for treating asthma and COPD.
Accolate (zafirlukast) is an oral leukotriene receptor antagonist for the treatment of asthma.
THERAPY AREA WORLD MARKET (MAT/Q3/08)
The prescription Respiratory world market value is $53 billion.
The World Health Organization estimates that 100 million people worldwide suffer from asthma and more than twice that from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which is currently the fourth leading cause of death in the world with further increases in the prevalence and mortality of the disease predicted for the coming decades.
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