18 July 2006 - Bayer HealthCare and BioRx Introduce Educational Children’s Book About Hemophilia
BERKELEY, Calif. & CINCINNATI, Ohio — Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals and BioRx today announced the availability of The Great Inhibinator, a children’s book about hemophilia. Written by Chris Perretti Barnes, the mother of a young boy with hemophilia, the book explains inhibitors from the perspective of a young boy recently diagnosed with them. Inhibitors affect a small percentage of people with hemophilia A, and occur when the immune system produces an antibody, or an inhibitor, that prevents the action of replacement factor VIII. The book is a teaching tool for parents and healthcare providers, and provides an easy-to-understand explanation of an inhibitor diagnosis. Barnes wrote The Great Inhibinator to help parents initiate a discussion about how their child feels about living with hemophilia and an inhibitor. The book tells the story of 6-year-old Nate, who is diagnosed with an inhibitor and finds a way to feel empowered despite his diagnosis. “For children and teens living with hemophilia A and B, learning and talking about hemophilia and inhibitors can be overwhelming, confusing, and scary,” said author Chris Barnes. “The Great Inhibinator can help parents open up lines of communication with their child and begin a discussion in a friendly, fun, and safe way.” The Great Inhibinator chronicles Nate’s quest to find a Halloween costume for trick or treating, and finds an unlikely inspiration for his costume – his inhibitor diagnosis. Nate creates “The Great Inhibinator,” a superhero who fights inhibitors and works to find a cure for hemophilia. He turns a frustrating and overwhelming time for himself and his family into a fun trick or treating event for his whole family. “Bayer HealthCare is committed to supporting special projects, like The Great Inhibinator, to educate young people and their families,” said Terry Tenbrunsel, Vice President of U.S. Sales and Marketing for Kogenate, Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals. “The Great Inhibinator is a great tool that will help children to better understand inhibitor formation in hemophilia, thereby allowing them to better manage their treatment.” “We are thrilled to be able to support such an innovative educational tool for the hemophilia community as we strongly believe that education is key to empowering patients and their families,” said Eric Hill, President, BioRx. “We also commend Chris for her initiative, passion and dedication to this community.” The Great Inhibinator is published by BioRx with support from Bayer HealthCare and is now available through both companies. To receive a copy, parents and healthcare providers can call Bayer Customer Service at 888-606-3780, or contact Chris Barnes at 866-44-BIORX (866-442-4679) or cbarnes@biorx.net. About Hemophilia About BioRx About Bayer HealthCare The company combines the global activities of the divisions Animal Health, Consumer Care, Diabetes Care, Diagnostics and Pharmaceuticals. Since January 1, 2006 the new Pharmaceutical Division consists of the former Biological Products and Pharmaceutical Division and now comprises three business units: Hematology/Cardiology, Oncology and Primary Care. Bayer HealthCare’s aim is to discover and manufacture products that will improve human and animal health worldwide. The products enhance well-being and quality of life by diagnosing, preventing and treating diseases.
Hemophilia is an inherited bleeding disorder characterized by prolonged or spontaneous bleeding, especially into the muscles, joints, or internal organs. About 17,000 Americans have hemophilia. The disease is caused by deficient or defective blood coagulation proteins, known as factor VIII or IX. The most common form of the disease is hemophilia A, or classic hemophilia, in which the clotting factor VIII is either deficient or defective. Hemophilia B is characterized by deficient or defective factor IX.
Based in Cincinnati Ohio, BioRx is a national pharmacy specializing in highly customized care for the bleeding disorders community. As one of the nation’s fastest growing providers of hemophilia clotting factors and other specialty pharmaceuticals the company’s clinical staff reaches patients and physicians in 43 states. To learn more about BioRx and its products and services visit www.biorx.net.
Bayer HealthCare, a subsidiary of Bayer AG, is one of the world’s leading, innovative companies in the health care and medical products industry based in Leverkusen/Germany. In 2005, the Bayer HealthCare subgroup generated sales amounting to some 9.4 billion Euro. Bayer HealthCare employed 33,800 people worldwide in 2005.
This news release contains forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development, or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in our public reports filed with the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (including our Form 20-F). The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.
