Celgene’s Chairman and CEO Robert Hugin (pictured) has been appointed chairman of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

He succeeds Eli Lilly’s John Lechleiter and said his priorities for his 12-month term are to defend intellectual property and the incentives for new medicines.

John Castellani, PhRMA President and CEO, said the new chair will provide a “strong foundation for the millions of US jobs our industry creates and supports” through his policies.

Mr Hugin was appointed Celgene chair in 2011 having served as president since 2010 and chief operating officer since 2006.

“I look forward to working with our leadership team, the PhRMA staff, and our member companies to advocate for policies that support the advancement of medical innovation and that ensure access for patients to life-extending therapies,” Mr Hugin said. “Through our actions, we must ensure that continued medical innovation is part of the solution to healthcare costs and economic growth in the long term.”

Alongside Hugin’s appointment, the trade body also appointed Pfizer’s president and CEO Ian Read as the next chair and Merck and Co’s chief executive Kenneth Frazier as treasurer.

The experienced Karen Browne has been appointed Business Unit Director for Haematology in the UK and Ireland at Celgene.

She has gained promotion from her role as director of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukaemia marketing across Europe after successfully building the company’s franchise.

Samantha Pearce, Celgene UK and Ireland General Manager, said Ms Brown’s expertise in her former role will help the company improve the support it provides to patients with the rare disease.

Karen Browne has held a number of sales management and marketing roles over the past decade. In her new role, she will be responsible for managing and motivating Celgene’s sales and marketing teams.

The appointment comes after Celgene recently appointed Sarah Bater at is new Human Resources Director for the UK and Ireland.

The European Organisation for Rare Diseases (EURORDIS) has given its annual Company Award for medical innovation in rare diseases to Celgene.

The award recognises the biotech firm’s leading position in the treatment of orphan diseases, as well as its dialogue with patient groups.

Celgene has 17 orphan drug designations from the EMA, including products to treat types of leukaemia and myeloma, and is currently developing products to treat 45 rare diseases.

Orphan diseases are defined by the EMA as conditions affecting no more than five per 10,000 people. ‘Orphan drugs’ developed to treat them have a special regulatory status.

EURORDIS is the largest European patient organisation in the field of rare diseases. Its awards recognise outstanding contributions by companies, researchers and others to reducing the impact of rare diseases on people’s lives.

“We are honoured to receive the EURORDIS Company Award for our work in rare diseases, which is a testament to the strong partnerships we have throughout Europe with the people focused on treatment options for some of the most difficult-to-study and difficult-to-treat conditions,” said Stefano Portolano, Celgene’s Vice President for Haematology, Europe.

“In the nearly 13 years since the Orphan Drug Regulation was enacted, there has been growing recognition of the need for treatments for rare diseases that help patients live longer and higher quality lives. Celgene is proud to be recognised for its contributions in this area.”

Yann Le Cam, CEO of EURORDIS, commented: “We are proud that the rare disease community is becoming a model for multi-stakeholder partnership and international collaboration as well as for solidarity and unity throughout Europe.”

Celgene Corporation, based in the US with a European subsidiary based in Switzerland, specialises in developing drugs to treat cancer and inflammatory diseases through gene and protein regulation.

Biotechnology company Celgene UK and Ireland has appointed experienced HR professional Sarah Bater as Director of Human Resources.

Bater has held senior HR roles in several companies including AstraZeneca, BAA Ltd and Vodafone.

At AstraZeneca, where she was Head of HR Shared Services, Bater focused on developing the company’s key account management capability.

Her areas of expertise include strengthening diversity and inclusion within a company, helping it to broaden the range of its performance.

A global biotechnology leader, Celgene recently announced positive phase 3 clinical trial results for drugs to treat pancreatic cancer and psoriatic arthritis.

“Celgene is a company which has successfully established a dynamic and prosperous environment,” Bater said. “I hope to bring my experience to the HR team to help reinforce the great values Celgene already holds and ensure a culture where existing and future employees will thrive.”

Samantha Pearce, General Manager of Celgene UK and Ireland, commented: “Celgene has gone through a period of fast-paced growth over the last few years, so we are delighted that Sarah, with her expertise in HR, will be joining our team.

“Her role reinforces our commitment to our employees, current and future, to help them grow professionally whilst ensuring the Celgene culture is maintained.”

John Lechleiter, the Chairman, President and CEO of Eli Lilly and Company, has been elected as Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

He succeeds Sanofi CEO Christopher Viehbacher and is joined by Celgene’s Robert Hugin, elected as Chairman-elect of the Board of Directors, and Pfizer’s Ian Read, elected as treasurer.

John Castellani, PhRMA President and CEO, said it will be an honour to “work closely with these visionary, passionate leaders of our sector”.

Mr Lechleiter initially joined Lilly in 1979. He has served as Chairman, President and CEO of the company for the past four years after becoming President and Chief Operating Officer in 2005, when he joined the company’s board of directors.

“I’m honoured to lead PhRMA during this very important time in the history of our industry,” Mr Lechleiter said. “PhRMA member companies play an incredibly important role in the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective health care for our citizens. Continued progress against diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and diabetes requires policies that enable medical innovation to thrive. I look forward to the opportunity to advance these important conversations at an industry level.”

Dr Richard Barker, the former Director General of the ABPI, has been elected to the Board of Directors at biopharmaceutical company Celgene.

The experienced Dr Barker served at the ABPI for nearly seven years until his departure in May 2011, and as a board member for the European and International pharmaceutical industry federations.

Robert Hugin, Celgene’s Chairman and CEO, says Dr Barker’s “international perspective” will assist the company “through an increasingly dynamic healthcare landscape”.

The election to Celgene’s board is Dr Barker’s second appointment this month after he joined the authentication and traceability services company Aegate as a senior adviser.

Prior to Dr Barker’s time at the ABPI, he served as Chief Executive of Chiron Diagnostics, General Manager of IBM’s Worldwide Healthcare Solutions, and led McKinsey & Company’s European healthcare practice.

Celgene’s best-selling product Revlimid suffered a setback in November 2011 when it found in Phase III trials to provide no overall survival benefit to patients with prostate cancer.

Biopharmaceutical company Celgene has appointed Dr David Gillen as their new UK and Ireland Medical Director.

The appointment aims to reinforce the company’s commitment to its portfolio of products and use the experience of Dr Gillen to enhance its pipeline.

Samantha Pearce, Celgene General Manager in the UK and Ireland, says the new Medical Director is “one of the most well respected and experienced medical leaders” in the UK pharma industry.

Dr Gillen worked within the NHS as a physician for seven years before joining Pfizer’s R&D unit. In 2010, he joined Gilead Sciences as the Head of International Medical Affairs. “I am delighted to be appointed as Medical Director at Celgene and look forward to working with the team in an area that I’m passionate about,” he commented. “This is a very exciting time as Celgene’s portfolio expands and I can’t wait to build on the excellent work that’s already being undertaken.”

A quarter of the NHS drugs spending of £4.1 billion last year went on just ten medicines, according to a new report.

IMS Health found that total prescribing costs in England, including primary care and community prescriptions, reached a record £12.86 billion in 2010, an increase of 4.8% from the previous year.

This total in English hospitals has increased by 7.7%.

The report, commissioned by the NHS, says that this growth is likely to be related to the introduction of new, more expensive treatments.

The top 10 drugs (Figure 1) were mainly biologics used to treat either autoimmune diseases or cancers.

The most expensive were two arthritis drugs, Abbott’s Humira (adalimumab), with an increase of 19% to £180.5 million, and Pfizer and Amgen’s Enbrel (etanercept), costing £179.6 million.

Novartis’ Lucentis (ranibizumab) treatment for eye disease cost £128.9 million, overtaking Roche’s breast cancer medicine Herceptin.

The report noted the difficulty in biologics, as they are unlikely to be copied and manufactured into generics, consequently costing for the NHS more for branded medication. Manufacturers are likely to make more innovative forms of existing drugs, which would also push prices up.

However, the primary care drugs bill, which takes up 66% of the £12.9 billion spending of medicines in the English NHS, is expected to decrease by £1 billion over the next four years due to a series of patent expiry dates.

NICE has recommended two new treatment options for patients with multiple myeloma.

Celgene’s Thalidomide has been recommended as a first-line treatment in people where high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplantation is considered inappropriate. If the patient is intolerable to Thalidomide, Janssen’s Velcade (Bortezomib) is then recommended.

Dr Carole Longson, Health Technology Evaluation Centre Director at NICE, claimed that the new regimens have been shown to be “more effective at delaying disease progression and improving patients’ life expectancy.”

Multiple myeloma is a rare type of cancer that develops from cells in the bone marrow. Almost 4,000 cases are diagnosed every year in the UK.

Mike Hobday, Head of Policy at Macmillan Cancer Support, stated: “It is great news that NICE has recommended these drugs for cancer patients with multiple myeloma and that their needs have been listened to.

“For too long patients with less common cancers, such as multiple myeloma have lost out on receiving the vital medicines they need on the NHS.

“This decision recognises the need to fund drugs that improve the quality and length of life for cancer patients with rarer cancers, which is a key step to improving better access to treatments for all.”

Industry veteran and the founder of Celgene Dr Sol Barer has joined Inspire’s board of directors.

Dr Barer brings with him more than 30 years’ experience within the industry and will focus on addressing unmet need in the treatment of heart attack patients.

Asher Holzer, co-founder and President of Inspire, says it is an “honour to add such an accomplished and recognised biotechnology leader” to the company’s board.

It was in 1980 that Dr Barer formed Celgene. During his time with the company he occupied the positions of President, COO, CEO, Executive Chairman and Chairman before his retirement last month.

He also serves as a director at Amicus Therapeutics, Aegerion Pharmaceuticals and ContraFect Corporation.