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DISEASES
» Anemia (2005)
» Breast Cancer (2007)
» Cardiovascular Diseases (2007)
» Diabetes (2005)
» Growth Hormone Deficiency (2005)
» Haemophilia (2005)
» Hepatitis B (2005)
» Inflammatory Bowel Disease (2007)
» Lymphomas (2005)
» Multiple Sclerosis (2005)
» Rheumatoid Arthritis and other Inflammatory Rheumatism (2007)
Biotechnology for
Growth Hormone Deficiency (2005)
<table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">The disease</span><br> <span class="rteColumn">Deficiency in growth hormone has very significant consequences for both adults and children. The deficiency can be acquired, as the result of a lesion (cyst, tumour, trauma, irradiation), or congenital, following mutations or a problem during foetal development. </span> <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=1" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">How many people are affected ?</span><br> Lack of growth due to a deficiency in growth hormone and Prader-Willi syndrome affect 1 live birth in 10,000 per annum. Turner’s syndrome is more common, with 1 birth in 2,000 affected. Deficiency in adults is rarer. <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=2" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">How many people die from the disease?</span><br> Currently updated... <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=3" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">Living with the disease</span><br> Children who have a growth hormone deficiency have an abnormally slow rate of growth and muscle mass is considerably reduced. A growth hormone deficiency can have a number of effects in adults: accumulation of fat mass, an increase in cholesterol levels causing an increase in the risk of cardiovascular accidents, a decrease in bone density, disturbance in sexual function. A number of genetic diseases (Turner’s Syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome) are also sensitive to growth hormone. These diseases are very disabling (shortness of stature but also mental retardation and obesity). <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=4" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> <tr> <td><span class="diseaseSubTitle">Treatment <font color='#FFFFFF' size=-2>Témoignage patient de </font> </span></td> </tr> <tr> <td><span class="diseaseText"><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="10"></span></td> </tr> </table> <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5"> <tr> <td valign="top" bgcolor="#B9E3FF"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle2">Traditional approach</span><br> The first growth hormone-based drugs appeared in the 1950’s in the United States, and in 1970 in Europe. This growth hormone was obtained by extraction from the pituitary glands of human cadavers. In addition to the difficulty of supply (resulting in limited use), the dramatic side effect of this pituitary-derived hormone was infection of patients with Creuzfeld-Jacob disease. More than a hundred cases occurred in France. <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=5" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> <td> </td> <td valign="top" bgcolor="#B9E3FF"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle2">Biotech revolutions</span><br> At the end of the 1980’s, patients were offered a synthetic human growth hormone produced using the techniques of biotechnology which carried no risk of infection. Another “biodrug” was developed to stimulate endogenous production of the hormone by the patient. The large scale production also permits to expand therapeutic indication to more patients (especialy to patients with orphean diseases) <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=6" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/spacer.gif" width="227" height="1"></td> <td><img src="../images/spacer.gif" width="1" height="1"></td> <td><img src="../images/spacer.gif" width="227" height="1"></td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#B9E3FF"> <td colspan="3"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle2">Drugs currently available</span><br> Two recombinant proteins have been developed: somatropin, which is growth hormone itself and sermorelin, a hormone which stimulates production of growth hormone. These proteins are then introduced into medical preparations put on the market by a number of different pharmaceutical companies. <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=7" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3"><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="5"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">Number of patients treated</span><br> In France, the number of children and adults treated with growth hormone is estimated to be 10,000 per annum. <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=8" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">Future</span><br> The developments expected in the treatment of growth hormone deficiency are essentially a reduction in the number of injections (currently once a day) and new types of administration (inhalers, for example). <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=9" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table> <table width="485" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td valign="top"> <span class="diseaseSubTitle">Costs to society</span><br> For a child, at an average price of €40/mg, an average weight of 20 kg and 1 dose of 1 unit/kg/week, a year’s treatment costs €13, 000. For adults, at a dose of 0.5 mg per day, the annual cost of a substitute treatment is in the region of €7, 000. <a href="more.php?diseaseid=20&bloc=10" class="lienBleu">More</a></td> </tr> <tr> <td><img src="../images/pix.gif" width="1" height="15"></td> </tr> </table>
