Survey Results Show Eighty Percent of Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients Report Life-Altering Pain Daily or Multiple Times a Week, Despite Treatment

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. and BRIDGEWATER, N.J., May 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Honestly RA, a new survey of more than 1,000 people in the United States living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), found that even after treatment, approximately 80 percent of RA patients experience pain daily or multiple times per week.¹ Conducted by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) and Sanofi, Honestly RA also revealed this pain is so significant that even after treatment, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) say it keeps them away from daily activities and celebrations.¹

For many people with the chronic, lifelong condition of RA, finding the right treatment can be a challenge.² Through Honestly RA, Sanofi and Regeneron sought to take a very honest look at life with RA, in hopes of better understanding patient needs when it comes to treatment and overall support.  The Honestly RA program includes a series of shareable illustrations, designed to recognize the emotional impact of the daily struggles, frustrations and triumphs of living with RA.  For more information on the survey and to view and share the illustrations, visit HonestlyRA.com.

The survey found that because treatments don't always work as well as patients would like, people living with RA have tried an average of more than four prescription medications in the last 5 years.¹

In addition, the survey revealed a need for more support of RA patients, particularly when it comes to the conversations they have with their physicians about treatments. Although a majority of respondents say that doctors are their go-to source for information on treatment options for RA (91 percent), many people living with RA (58 percent) delay seeing a doctor right away if their treatment stops working.¹ Those surveyed cited several reasons for the delay, including because they think the symptoms will go away on their own (41 percent of those who delay) or they don't want to switch to a perceived stronger medication with potentially more side effects (37 percent of those who delay).¹

"The Honestly RA results reveal there is a clear need for more support of RA patients – from management of the disease impact on their life to the conversations that they have with their physicians," said Dr. Olga Petryna, Rheumatologist and Clinical Instructor at NYU Langone. "Many patients are dissatisfied with their current treatment and express frustration when a switch in treatment is needed.  That's why physicians and the broader support community need to engage those patients who may be struggling to meet their treatment goals in an open conversation."

Notably, people with RA also feel a lack of empathy from others around them. Ninety percent of Honestly RA respondents said that given RA is a largely "invisible" disease, it is frustrating when others do not understand how much pain they are in.¹

"My pain affects almost every area of my life – work, travel, spending time with friends and family – and it can be frustrating when someone doesn't understand the impact," said RA patient, blogger and advocate, Angela Lundberg. "I know it can be difficult, but I encourage everyone living with RA to not be afraid of speaking up, initiating a conversation with your doctor about treatment and celebrating all of your little achievements – no matter how small they seem, or how hard they are for someone else to understand."

About the Survey
Honestly RA included data from 1,004 patients aged 18 and up in the U.S. who self-reported they were diagnosed with RA and whose treatment journey had progressed beyond just a Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug (NSAID). The online survey was fielded between July 25 and August 8, 2016 by Edelman Intelligence on behalf of Sanofi and Regeneron.

About Sanofi
Sanofi, a global healthcare leader, discovers, develops and distributes therapeutic solutions focused on patients' needs. Sanofi is organized into five global business units: Diabetes and Cardiovascular, General Medicines and Emerging Markets, Sanofi Genzyme, Sanofi Pasteur and Consumer Healthcare. Sanofi is listed in Paris (EURONEXT: SAN) and in New York (NYSE: SNY).

About Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Regeneron (NASDAQ: REGN) is a leading science-based biopharmaceutical company that discovers, invents, develops, manufactures and commercializes medicines for the treatment of serious medical conditions. Regeneron commercializes medicines for eye diseases, high LDL cholesterol, atopic dermatitis and a rare inflammatory condition and has product candidates in development in other areas of high unmet medical need, including rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, pain, cancer and infectious diseases. For additional information about the company, please visit www.regeneron.com or follow @Regeneron on Twitter. 

Sanofi Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. These statements include projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives, intentions and expectations with respect to future financial results, events, operations, services, product development and potential, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "plans" and similar expressions. Although Sanofi's management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of Sanofi, that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, future clinical data and analysis, including post marketing, decisions by regulatory authorities, such as the FDA or the EMA, regarding whether and when to approve any drug, device or biological application that may be filed for any such product candidates as well as their decisions regarding labelling and other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of such product candidates, the absence of guarantee that the product candidates if approved will be commercially successful, the future approval and commercial success of therapeutic alternatives, Sanofi's ability to benefit from external growth opportunities and/or obtain regulatory clearances, risks associated with intellectual property and any related pending or future litigation and the  ultimate outcome of such litigation,  trends in exchange rates and prevailing interest rates, volatile economic conditions, the impact of cost containment initiatives and subsequent changes thereto, the average number of shares outstanding as well as those discussed or identified in the public filings with the SEC and the AMF made by Sanofi, including those listed under "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in Sanofi's annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2016. Other than as required by applicable law, Sanofi does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements

¹ Honestly RA Survey Results PPT, Oct. 2016.
² Mayo Clinic. "Rheumatoid Arthritis." Available at http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/home/ovc-20197388. Last accessed March 2017.

SOURCE Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.