CSL Behring Donates Medicine Used in Treating Bleeding Disorders to World Federation of Hemophilia

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., April 3, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its ongoing commitment to the global coagulation disorders community, CSL Behring will again donate factor product to the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) in connection with World Hemophilia Day this month. The medicine will be used in treating patients in developing countries and who have certain types of bleeding disorders. The donation supports WFH's progress in improving the diagnosis and treatment of bleeding disorders through its Global Alliance for Progress (GAP) program. CSL Behring's current donation includes product used in treating von Willebrand Disease (VWD) and hemophilia. The total volume of product being donated in this installment is approximately 1,000,000 international units.

In 2009, CSL Behring was the first manufacturer in the world to commit to a three-year contract with WFH to aid the GAP program with coagulation factor donations. The donations were made in installments of 2 million international units three times during the life of the contract, for a total volume of 6 million international units (IUs). CSL Behring has since renewed its product donation contract with WFH, for the period 2013 through 2015.  

CSL Behring, as a member of the CSL Group, is committed to contributing to the economic, social and environmental well-being of its communities. In prior years, product making up the CSL Behring donation has been manufactured at CSL's Broadmeadows plant in Australia, and will continue to originate from that plant in the future.

"CSL Behring is pleased and proud to support the World Federation of Hemophilia as a long-standing contributor to GAP," said Paul Perreault, President of CSL Behring. "WFH is committed to improving the lives of patients with bleeding disorders in areas of the world where the needs are greatest. Their mission aligns closely with that of CSL Behring, as we also focus on the unmet needs of patients with rare and serious bleeding disorders and constantly seek to make meaningful differences in their lives and their communities."

"Generous donations like these made by CSL Behring serve as a catalyst for improving the overall care of people with bleeding disorders. The WFH relies on these donations to help fulfill our commitment to introduce clotting factor concentrates in developing countries where it might not otherwise be available," said Alain Weill, President of the WFH. "We are grateful to all our industry partners who provide, among other resources, valuable and life-saving medicine such as CSL Behring's donation for the treatment of serious bleeding disorders."

About Hemophilia and von Willebrand Disease
Hemophilia is a congenital bleeding disorder characterized by prolonged or spontaneous bleeding, especially into the muscles, joints, or internal organs. In nearly all cases, it affects only males. 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. Hemophilia A affects approximately 1 in 5,000 to 10,000 people. Hemophilia B affects approximately 1 in 25,000 to 50,000 people. The recommended treatment for people with hemophilia deficiency is to treat by replacement factor therapy.

Von Willebrand disease, the most common hereditary bleeding disorder in the United States, affects approximately 1 to 2 percent of the U.S. population.¹ It is caused by a deficiency or abnormality of the von Willebrand factor, a protein in the blood that is necessary for normal blood clotting. Men and women are equally likely to be affected by VWD. VWD is classified by type of defect, ranging from Type I (the most common and mildest) to Type III (the least common and most severe).

VWD is caused by a deficiency or abnormality of VWF, a protein in the blood that is necessary for normal blood clotting. Factor VIII replacement therapy, which is also part of the CSL Behring donation, works by replacing the VWF/FVIII complex that is deficient or defective in patients with VWD. The concentrate is purified from pooled human plasma from many carefully screened plasma donors and contains the clotting proteins VWF and FVIII.

About the Global Alliance for Progress
The Global Alliance for Progress (GAP) is a 10-year healthcare development project, launched in 2003. GAP's goal is to greatly increase the diagnosis and treatment of people with hemophilia and other bleeding disorders in developing countries.

The program aims to close the gap between the number of people born with hemophilia and those who reach adulthood, the gap between the estimated and actual number of people diagnosed with bleeding disorders, and the gap between the volume of treatment product needed versus what is available. GAP partners include CSL Behring, Baxter, Bayer, Biotest, Biogen Idec, Grifols, Pfizer, the Jan Willem Andre de la Porte Family Foundation, and the World Health Organization (WHO). Twenty countries have participated in GAP: Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Ecuador, Egypt, Georgia, Jordan, Lebanon, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Tunisia, and South Africa. A GAP project in Colombia is currently being launched.

About the World Federation of Hemophilia
For 50 years, the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH), an international not-for- profit organization, has worked to improve the lives of people with hemophilia and other inherited bleeding disorders. Established in 1963, it is a global network of patient organizations in 122 countries and has official recognition from the World Health Organization. Visit WFH online at www.wfh.org

About CSL Behring
CSL Behring is a leader in the plasma protein therapeutics industry. Committed to saving lives and improving the quality of life for people with rare and serious diseases, the company manufactures and markets a range of plasma-derived and recombinant therapies worldwide. CSL Behring therapies are indicated for the treatment of coagulation disorders including hemophilia and von Willebrand disease, primary immune deficiencies, hereditary angioedema and inherited respiratory disease. The company's products are also used in cardiac surgery, organ transplantation, burn treatment and to prevent hemolytic diseases in newborns. CSL Behring operates one of the world's largest plasma collection networks, CSL Plasma. CSL Behring is a subsidiary of CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. For more information, visit www.cslbehring.com.

Contact:

Sheila A. Burke, Director, Communications & Public Relations
Worldwide Commercial Operations CSL Behring
C: 484-919-2618
O: 610-878-4209
Sheila.Burke at cslbehring.com

SOURCE CSL Behring

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