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Institute for the Study of Aging Co-Organizes International Pharmacoeconomic Conference on Alzheimer's Disease

The Institute for the Study of Aging (ISOA), Ltd., a biomedical venture philanthropy founded by the Lauder family, is co-organizing the 4th International Pharmacoeconomic Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Stockholm, Sweden, on Saturday and Sunday, September 24-25, 2005. Other organizers are the Karolinska Institutet, and the International Working Group on Harmonization of Dementia Drug Guidelines (IWGH).

The conference is bringing together scientific experts and opinion leaders from academia, regulatory bodies, and the pharmaceutical industry to discuss issues relating to the economic evaluation of drug treatments for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. ISOA founding Executive Director and Alzheimer's disease drug development research expert Howard Fillit, MD, will be a featured speaker and panelist.

According to Dr. Fillit, "This unique international meeting focuses on the global economic impact of one of the most devastating diseases of the 21st Century. Advancing pharmacoeconomics research is especially important and timely for drug development in Alzheimer's disease, since unfortunately cognitive impairment with aging is still viewed by many as simply a quality of life problem, and regulatory agencies, formularies and payers are having great difficulty assessing the individual and societal benefits of new drugs for Alzheimer's disease. ISOA is honored to be working with the Karolinska Institutet and the IWGH on this critical worldwide issue."

A detailed conference agenda is available at http://www.healtheconomics.se/piev/program. This conference is also being supported by generous donations from Pfizer, Inc., Forest Laboratories, Inc., Merck & Company, Inc., Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Lundbeck, Novartis, Janssen-Cilag, Merz Pharma, and European Health Economics. For more information regarding the conference, contact ISOA Executive Director Howard Fillit, MD, at 212-935-2402 or hfillit@aging-institute.org.

About the Institute for the Study of Aging (ISOA)

The Institute for the Study of Aging (ISOA) is a biomedical venture philanthropy whose sole mission is to accelerate the discovery and development of new drugs to prevent, treat and cure Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Since its founding as a private foundation by the Lauder family in 1998, ISOA has awarded over $24.3 million for 144 research programs and conferences at leading academic institutions and biotechnology companies worldwide. In 2004, the Lauder family established a public charity, ISOA, Ltd., to enable individuals, foundations and corporations to partner with the Institute in an effort to raise additional funds and award more grants. For more information, visit http://www.aging-institute.org, or call Howard Fillit, MD (Executive Director) or Suzanne Grossberg (Director of Development) at 212 935 2402.

About the Karolinska Institutet

The Karolinska Institutet is one of Europe's largest medical universities. It is also Sweden´s largest centre for medical training and research. The Karolinska Institutet was founded in 1810 and has 1,300 senior researchers/teachers, 2,500 postgraduate students, and 300 guest researchers in 25 departments. Awarding the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine since 1901 has given Karolinska Institutet an invaluable contact network throughout the medical scientific community. For more information, visit www.ki.se, or call Bengt Winblad at +46 8 585 836 17 or +46 70 632 67 71.

About the International Working Group on Harmonization (IWGH)

The International Working Group on Harmonization of dementia drug guidelines (IWGH) is a highly focused group whose mission to harmonize dementia drug guidelines drafted by national regulatory bodies, improve efficiency of multisite-multinational drug trials, and to educate relevant parties concerning the development of interventions to treat dementia. The IWGH's next meeting is the 4th Asian regional meeting to be held in Tokyo November 11-13, 2005. For more information, visit http://www.harmonization.org/, or call Professor Jean-Marc Orgogozo at + 33 5 56 79 60 04 or j.m.orgogozo@neuro.u-bordeaux2.fr.

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