German Pharmaceutical Giant Boehringer Ingelheim Is All About Money And Fast-Tracking New Drugs!

Wow! Check out those expensive new headquarters of German Pharmaceutical Giant Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma! They are all about marketing for the money and getting those drugs approved!

Boehringer Ingelheim’s lead hepatitis C compound moves into phase III – the first within the BI HCV portfolio

(Yes, BI Has A Portfolio of Hep C Drugs To Cash In On!)

FDA Fast Track designations granted for both: the protease inhibitor BI 201335 plus standard-of-care and the interferon-free combination of BI 201335 with polymerase inhibitor, BI 207127

Not for U.S. media
INGELHEIM, Germany, 2 April 2011 – Boehringer Ingelheim today announced the study outline for the pivotal Phase III clinical trials designed to evaluate BI 201335, its once-daily oral protease inhibitor, in both treatment-naïve and -experienced patients with chronic genotype-1 hepatitis C virus (HCV), the most challenging genotype to treat.

In parallel, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designations for BI 201335 plus standard-of care (SOC), and as part of the interferon-free combination with the polymerase inhibitor, BI 207127, in chronic genotype-1 HCV patients.

"We are delighted to receive the FDA’s Fast Track designation for both, our BI 201335 plus SOC, and interferon-free combination treatment approaches. If successful, the combination therapy carries the potential for patients to live without the burden of interferon’s side effects," said Professor Klaus Dugi, Corporate Senior Vice President Medicine at Boehringer Ingelheim. 

BI 201335 Phase III Trials* BI 201335 will be evaluated in multiple randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials in combination with pegylated-interferon and ribavirin (PegIFN/RBV), the current HCV SOC. The Phase III trials include two studies in treatment- naïve and one study in treatment-experienced chronic genotype-1 HCV patients. The two studies in treatment-naïve patients will be conducted in the European Union and Japan, as well as the U.S., Canada, Taiwan and Korea. The study in treatment-experienced patients will be conducted globally. BI 201335 will be dosed once-daily at either 120mg or 240mg in combination with PegIFN/RBV and treatment durations will range from 24 to 48 weeks. The primary endpoint of each trial is sustained viral response (SVR), which is considered viral cure. 

PegIFN-Free Phase II Trials of BI 201335 + BI 207127 In parallel, Boehringer Ingelheim is developing BI 207127, an oral HCV polymerase inhibitor that has completed Phase I clinical trials in combination with BI 201335. Phase II trials evaluating BI 207127 plus BI 201335 in PegIFN-free regimens, both with and without ribavirin, are currently underway. The FDA has designated this investigation as a Fast Track development programme. Fast Track is a process designed to facilitate the development and expedite the review of drugs to treat serious diseases and fill an unmet medical need. The purpose is to get important new drugs to patients earlier.(Nobody Ever Told Me About The Interferon Free Trials Of BI 207127: Why Is That? Why Didn't I Have The Option Offered?)

About Boehringer Ingelheim in Virology Boehringer Ingelheim has more than 6,900 scientists working in cross disciplinary teams within our global R&D network in six large therapeutic areas, including virology. In addition to its ongoing research programme for HCV, Boehringer Ingelheim has a long-standing history in virology drug development, including compounds for the treatment of HIV (VIRAMUNE® (nevirapine) tablets/oral suspension, the first approved HIV non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) and Aptivus®, an HIV protease inhibitor). 

The Evolution of a Company Logo Expressing What Exactly?

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma And Marketing Strategies To Make Money

Pressure in consumer healthcare sales

Healthcare reforms and a downward pressure on prices as a result of generic drug manufacturers leave companies like Boehringer Ingelheim under enormous pressure to reduce costs. The competition is tough and the customers are experts: Companies that want to sell medicines to pharmacies require strong and original sales strategies. The consumer healthcare products division of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG enhanced its SAP Customer Relationship Management (SAP CRM) application with additional campaign and event management applications to gain an overview of all of its marketing activities and measure their success.

Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world’s top 20 largest pharmaceutical companies. It employs 39,800 people in 135 associated companies worldwide. The family-owned company, which was founded in 1885, focuses on researching, developing, producing and selling new compounds for both human and veterinary medicine. In 2007, it generated total revenues of €10.95 billion. The firm invests almost one-fifth of its revenues in the research and development of new medicines.

The pharmaceutical company’s consumer healthcare products division intends to launch a marketing campaign for the pharmacy-only medicine in the next quarter that will continue for several months.

Boehringer Ingelheim groups pharmacies together according to sales, potential, and segments. 

To measure a campaign’s success, all internal and external customer data is consolidated and compared. The 150 members of the sales team now have access to a graphical and easy to use SAP CRM user interface that offers a standardized view of all the campaigns and events. The days of sending Microsoft Excel and Word documents back and forth to prepare for a marketing campaign are definitively over.

It does not take long for the sales representative to reach a deal with the pharmacists: The pharmacy will place the medicine in a prominent position behind the cash register over the coming summer months, while a product stand and additional display materials in the shop’s window will help draw attention to the sales promotion. 

A year earlier, the sales representative would have organized his marketing activities and visits to pharmacies almost entirely at his discretion. He would have worked alone to classify customers and assess their potential. Previously, he and his approximately 60 colleagues were only informed about upcoming marketing activities during sales conferences.

Today, however, the sales representative plans his activities together with the company’s marketing department, supported by an industry-specific solution with special campaign and event management functions. All the customer data is prepared in the centralized solution to give the sales team timely information about campaigns and a structured analysis of their success.

Boehringer Ingelheim wanted to use a standardized campaign and event management system to improve communication between the marketing department, office-based personnel, and external sales representatives. The new solution provides decision-making support to sales management, marketing, and sales representatives to increase sales. One of the objectives of the system was to use standardized data and comprehensive analysis to determine which wholesalers or pharmacies were targeted by campaigns currently underway. 

Employees enter campaigns, activities, promotions, events, information about where they will be held, and additional data about trade shows or flight departure times, for example, in the marketing and event calendar. Furthermore, an entry can be linked to a campaign as soon as it is made in the system. Analysis and reporting functions enable Boehringer Ingelheim to track the success of the go-to-market of a new drug, for example. “The quality of our customer overview has improved significantly,” says Geßner.

The new marketing, event, and campaign management system has fulfilled project managers’ and users’ expectations, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Boehringer Ingelheim employees are very satisfied with the integrated system enhanced by means of the CRM-To-Go package for the pharmaceuticals industry.

Not Very Helpful: Medical Sites On BI 201335 And Bad Rashes, But Good Ideas From Real Patients Suffering Like Me!

Basically, all I have learned is that they have no answer to the severity of my particular rash, and such severity has caused 4% of patients to discontinue treatment. Not very helpful. Man, this is really wearing me to the bone! Thank God for fellow patients in other Protease Inhibitors treatment with bad rashes. Maybe something they suggested below might just work.

Here is the list: Prednisone, Zertec, Elocon steroid cream, Atarax, Triamcinolone Acetonide Cream, Solumedrol

You Would Think There Would Be An Answer Readily Available!

Here are some possible treatments recommended by patients with similar side effects with other Hep C Protease Inhibitors that I need to investigate:


The only thing that did stop the itching was a pill called Atarax.  Its not a over the counter drug and your doctor has to write a prescription.  The itching was so bad I wanted to stop tx until I started the Atarax and it was the only thing that worked.  


triamcinolone acetonide cream usp. this is my rx, It is 1lb, and I have 6 refills


finally getting the rash under control with the solumedrol


Some parts looked like eczema.  Other parts like my neck just went a uniform angry red and I had to put ice packs on day and night to make the burning bearable. I got really wore out and fed up inspecting it every day and seeing one part die down just to see another part start to flare up. It was a total bummer. Lasted the whole month of July, then gradually the inflammation died down.  I had to treat with Elocon steroid cream the whole time.   


 I had some of the common riba rash issues during tx, but Lidex cream and Zertec antihistimine cleared it up in a few days. Wish I had that treatment earlier, because the itching was hellish! 


At that point, my dermatologist told me this was one of the most extreme allergic reactions she had ever seen.  The rash had converged, if you will, into one large continuous red area that covered, as she said, 90% of my body.  The term she used was confluent.  If you didn't touch it, it looked just as a really bad sunburn would.  There were no longer any indivdual bumps, they had all joined together at this point.  It caused extreme chills and fever and was hot to the touch, as an extremely bad sunburn would be.  I was always cold and taking a shower was excrutiating.  It zapped my strength and the itching was like nothing I've ever experienced before. 

Derm  prescribed Prednisone with a taper schedule of 21 days, however, my study doctor allowed me to stay on all meds for an additional day or two to see if the prednisone would work.  He was very clear that if the prednisone didn't clear it up quickly, I had to completely come off of the study, including SOC drugs. 


THIS IS WHERE I WILL NOT GO:


 But this rash is soo bad I hardly recognize myself. I'm covered fromhead to toe. I bath,shower 10 times a day, have tried every lotion, potion and perscription pill known to man. I lay in bed with up to six bags of ice at a time. I have never experienced so much pain  in all my life. It has now traveled to myface as well as other places too sensitive to discuss. I AM DONE! 12 weeks of torture.


For three weeks the rash kept increasing in area and intensity of pain.  I was panicking about what was going on.  The Hep Service nurse said it is common to have itch and rash so I kept on taking the treatment.   I finally couldn't take it any more so I stopped after taking with my family doctor and the Hep nurse.  After I stopped, I talked with a  dermatologist, and the Hep Specialist who said I was having an adverse reaction to the medication and it was a good thing that I stopped as it could have become life threatening.   It took about 10 days for the rash to clear but I still feel itchy at night.  Hopefully that will stop as well.  The side effects I was having until week 15 were not that bad to manage but the rash was too much.  Now I am waiting to see if the treatment cleared the virus.  The Hep specialist is doubtful but I am keeping up hope.


And something more...

Skin Care:
The dry skin from the interferon and the Riba-rash can be potentially very big sides from treatment.  It seems to affect fair skinned people the most.  Many describe the feeling as being like little bugs crawling all over your body.  Your skin is also dry and very sensitive from the interferon.  Freyja is sure that the Princess from the Princess and the Pea must have been on interferon treatment!

Your skin is your largest organ, and skin integrity is very important to your overall health.  Spend time on it, do some preventative maintenance on it - before it gets bad.   Your skin will heal slower due to low platelet counts and lower white blood cell counts (WBCs) which can make fighting infections more difficult and slow the healing process. The human body is an incredibly complex entity, when you are on interferon, your body is told that the a number one task is to fight viral infections. Unfortunately this leaves you open to bacterial and fungal infections, so use common sense.   also see Infection

Winter is also a drying season, run a humidifier, take warm, not hot showers, don't take baths (soaking can be very drying and irritate your skin), tap water contains a lot of chlorine.  Chlorine is a bleaching and color oxidizer which dries and strips your hair and skin of natural oils and color during a hot shower or bath.   Chlorine also absorbs into your skin through your pores.  This can aggravate sinuses, irritate eyes, and cause rashes.  Try to get a Chlorine filter for your shower head.

When showering, try to use a mild non-perfumed bath soap or gel.  Deodorant soaps may contain chemicals that could be hard on your delicate skin.  Use a soft cloth, no hard rubbing or scraping!  Do not pick at your blemishes!

Try to put only soft natural fibers next to your skin.  If you wear a bra (not occasionally but every day), get an all cotton one to reduce the irritation from the elastic.  Victoria's Secret has a wonderful line of soft stretch bras, or get an all cotton sports bra.  Carefully cut out those scratchy plastic tags in the back of your clothing.  Do not violently rip them out with your teeth as Lacey and Freyja did, it will leave holes in the back of your clothes.

Here is an overview on three approaches to skin care while on combo:

Over the counter:  To help preserve your skin integrity use a good lotion on your skin every day, am and p.m.-especially when getting out of the shower.   This stuff is excellent! Call your pharmacy and ask if they carry Aveeno lotion (made with colloidal oatmeal), if not, they can order it for you. Does not require a prescription.  Good to keep the itching at bay, good overall moisturizing lotion to use everywhere before dry patches, cracks and sores form.  Bag Balm (also known as Udder Cream) is also a good moisturizer (if you can stand the smell!). Eucerin Lotion is also inexpensive and great for dry skin.

For the face, I like PX Prescriptives-Flight Cream - "Instant Help for Dehydrated Skin" for the "Mummy Skin" on your face (your face will be as soft as a baby's butt, but your wallet will be hurtin'-$36 for a 1.7 Fl. oz tube that lasts about 2 months). Full of aloe, eucalyptus , and other great stuff, can slap it over makeup-sinks right in, no smearing.

If you start to get the "Riba-Rash" (small blister like eruptions that itch like hell-look like flea bites and leave oozing sores when scratched) get a hydrocortisone cream or Benadryl or Gold Bond lotion-they seem to help somewhat.  Downside: If you've got it bad, they usually don't last more than 4-5 hours at best.  Not enough for a good nights sleep.   Hot showers seem to aggravate them.

Homeopathic: Calendula lotion (made from Marigold flowers) helps sooth skin, aides in healing.  Here is a link I wrote about it with a place to get it on the web:http://my.webmd.com/roundtable_message/221527.

Prescription: If all else does not provide you with consistent relief, and you are tearing your skin up- then ask your doctor to  prescribe a good antihistamine.  You are having a severe allergic reaction to the Ribavirin, it's not uncommon at all.  I use Zyrtec, it goes right to the skin, does not make me drowsy. I’ve also heard good things about Claritin (also by Schering) and Allegra.  Also, ask your doctor forFluocinonide Cream USP 0.05, even doctors use it for their cracked skin from all the hand washing.

Freyja gets Elocon from her primary care physician. Can you guess who sells it? If you guessed Schering you get 100 points!

If you must scratch your itches, Pier One has excellent bamboo back scratcher for about .80-get many and put them around your house, they work much better than steak knives or screwdrivers!  Scratch gently!  Do not tear or rip your skin.

Lotion applicator- apply lotion to your back, if you don't have someone to do it for you, order a lotion applicator from a senior catalog -try Dr. Leonards-1-800-785-0880 - ask for #921 its $5.99.

 Info About Boehringer Ingelheim 201335


 The side effects attributed to BI 201335 were jaundice (no severe cases) and rash (severe cases–0.7 to 5.8%) and were found to be dose dependent. 
The PegIFN sparing treatment was well tolerated. Investigators reported that the most common adverse events observed in the study were mild gastro-intestinal effects (diarrhea, nausea, vomiting), rash or photosensitivity. 


Skin rash or photosensitivity reactions (mostly mild-to-moderate): 33%, 40%, and 59%, respectively; 1.3%, 0.7%, and 6%, respectively, developed severe rash. 4% of patients discontinued treatment prematurely due to adverse events (rash, photosensitivity, or jaundice) in the 2 once-daily groups, compared with 24% in the twice-daily group.


The most common side effect was rash and it was observed in 59% of the patients who received the 400 mg dose. 


The company reported potential side effects from the two oral compounds including itchiness, rash, photosensitivity, jaundice, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.


Weakness, itching, rash, hypersensitivity to sun exposure, yellowing of the skin and eyes, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea were the most common side effects in the study, occurring in more than 25 percent of patients. Between 6 percent and 12 percent of volunteers have discontinued treatment because of side effects, with most dropouts occurring among those receiving once-daily BI 201335, three-times daily BI 207127 plus ribavirin. 


Adverse Effects with Protease Inhibitors

 A sudden and severe cutaneous[outer skin]–mucous[inner skin]hypersensitivity reaction occurred, characterized by a diffuse, maculo[blemish-]papular[pimples]-orticarioid[irritation] rash accompanied by intense itching...  During the subsequent week of intensive care, including fluid-electrolyte management, steroid-albumin administration, and erythrocyte transfusion, the skin rash evolved into a desquamative phase with extensive epidermal detachment, whereas a normalization of all liver–kidney–myelopoietic parameters became almost complete 16 days after HAART interruption, and did not show relapses during the subsequent follow-up... In [treatment group 1] 1 individual withdrew from the study with rash...in [treatment group 2] 2 participants withdrew from the study, 2 due to rash...

 Severe rash associated with blistering, moist desquamation or ulceration has been reported in less than 1% of patients treated with STOCRIN. The incidence of erythema multiforme or Stevens-Johnson Syndrome was 0.14%. STOCRIN should be discontinued in patients developing severe rash associated with blistering, desquamation, mucosal involvement or fever... Rashes are usually mild-to-moderate maculopapular skin eruptions that occur within the first two weeks of initiating therapy with STOCRIN...

Rash

Rashes often appear as a side effect of antiretroviral treatment. These may be itchy but are usually harmless and short-lived. However, severe rashes can occur with nevirapine, and more rarely with some other drugs. Any rash occurring during the first few weeks of treatment should be reported to a doctor immediately, as should any rash accompanied by fever, blistering, facial swelling or aches. A rash occurring with abacavir may indicate a very dangerous hypersensitivity reaction, as described later in this page.

Tips for coping with rashes include:

• Avoiding hot showers or baths
• Using milder toiletries and laundry detergents
• Wearing cool fibres such as cotton, and avoiding wool
• Humidifying the air
• Trying moisturizers/emollients or calamine lotion

Antihistamine tablets can sooth rashes and are generally available without a prescription. However, because these may interact with antiretroviral medications, patients should check with their doctors before using them. More severe skin problems may be treated with steroids.

Boehringer Ingelheim Has A Better Non-Interferon Treatment That I Know Nothing About? Now I Truly Feel Like A Guinea Pig Suffering Through These Side Effects!

Hepatitis C: Interferon-free combination of BI 201335 plus BI 207127 and ribavirin shows up to 76% of patients achieve a virological response at week 12, and 59% achieve SVR12 with 16 weeks treatment

Data from pre-specified interim analysis of Phase IIb SOUND-C21 trial with Boehringer Ingelheim’s two investigational HCV direct-acting antivirals presented at AASLD

For media outside of the U.S.A. only  (Why?)

San Francisco, USA and Ingelheim, Germany [7 November 2011] – Boehringer Ingelheim today announced results from a pre-specified interim analysis of a Phase IIb study, named SOUND-C2. These data showed the combination of two oral direct acting anti hepatitis C virus (HCV) compounds (the protease inhibitor BI 201335 and the polymerase inhibitor BI 207127, with and without ribavirin (RBV), was successful in providing virological response rates at week 12 in treatment-naïve patients infected with the most difficult to treat genotype-1 (GT1) HCV. ¹ The shortest treatment duration tested in the study (16 weeks) achieved SVR12 in 59% of patients. None of the five study arms included treatment with interferon. ^1,2 These data were presented today at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) 2011 Liver Meeting in San Francisco, USA. ¹

“Results from the interim analysis of SOUND-C2 look promising,” said Stefan Zeuzem, M.D., Chief of the Department of Medicine and Professor of Medicine at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University Hospital in Frankfurt, Germany and lead investigator of the study. “They highlight the potential of BI 201335 plus BI 207127 to lessen the burden of existing treatments for a large portion of patients by offering a potential treatment option without the inclusion of interferon.”

The use of interferon in HCV treatment is challenging for a number of patients due to suboptimal response rates, contraindications or severe side effects and treatment durations. ³

“We very much look forward to the final results from the SOUND-C2 study. The development of an oral interferon-free direct-acting antiviral regimen underlines Boehringer Ingelheim’s goal of eliminating interferon from HCV treatment and a commitment to deliver innovative novel treatments in virology,” said Professor Klaus Dugi, Corporate Senior Vice President Medicine at Boehringer Ingelheim. “At AASLD we will also present further data from anti-HCV portfolio that demonstrates our dedication to meet the real-world challenges of HCV patients globally, ^1,4–7 including patient populations with traditionally difficult to treat virus types.” ^8–10

All five treatment arms of the interferon-free oral combination therapy of BI 201335/BI 207127/RBV showed high virologic response rates through week 12, defined by measuring the level of HCV RNA in patient blood:

• 70–76% of patients who received BI 201335 once daily (QD) + BI 207127 three times daily (TID) or twice daily (BID) with RBV achieved undetectable HCV RNA at week 12, with 13–21% of patients developing a viral load breakthrough during treatment
• 57% of patients who received BI 201335 QD + BI 207127 TID without RBV achieved viral response at week 12
• SVR12, which is considered highly predictive of SVR and cure of the infection, was achieved after 16 weeks of treatment in 59% of patients.

The safety and tolerability profile was comparable to other direct acting antiviral regimens.

Other BI data being presented at the meeting include:

• SILEN C3: Treatment for 12 or 24 weeks with BI201335 combined with peginterferon alfa-2a and ribavirin (P/R) in treatment-naïve patients with chronic genotype-1 HCV infection 
  (Abstract 39. D. Dieterich, et al., November 6, 4:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. PT) ⁴
• Characterization of HCV NS3 variants that emerged during virologic breakthrough and relapse from BI 201335 phase 2 SILEN-C1 study 
  (Poster 1339. G. Kukolj, et al., November 7, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PT) ⁵
• Treatment with the 2nd generation HCV protease inhibitor BI201335 results in high and consistent SVR rates – results from SILEN-C1 in treatment-naïve patients across different baseline factors 
  (Abstract 226. M.S. Sulkowski, et al., November 8, 8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. PT) ⁶
• High sustained virologic response following interferon-free treatment of chronic HCV GT1 infection for 4 weeks with HCV protease inhibitor BI201335, polymerase inhibitor BI207127 and ribavirin, followed by BI201335 and PegIFN/ribavirin –the SOUND-C1 study 
  (Abstract 249. S. Zeuzem, et al., November 8, 11:15 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. PT) ⁷

NOTES TO EDITORS 
Results of this open-label, randomised, Phase IIb study were presented as a late breaking poster titled, “Virologic response to an interferon-free regimen of BI201335 and BI207127, with and without ribavirin, in treatment-naive patients with chronic genotype-1 HCV infection: Week 12 interim results of the SOUND-C2 study,” by Professor Stefan Zeuzem. In the study, 362 treatment-naïve GT1 HCV patients were randomised into five interferon-free treatment groups, each with 120mg BI 201335 once daily but with different dosing of BI 207127 and treatment durations as follows:

• BI 201335 120mg QD + BI 207127 600mg TID + RBV for 16 weeks;
• BI 201335 120mg QD + BI 207127 600mg TID + RBV for 28 weeks;
• BI 201335 120mg QD + BI 207127 600mg TID + RBV for 40 weeks;
• BI 201335 120mg QD + BI 207127 600mg BID + RBV for 28 weeks; or
• BI 201335 120mg QD + BI 207127 600mg TID without RBV for 28 weeks.

About Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) HCV is an infectious disease of the liver and is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and liver transplant. The number of individuals chronically infected with HCV globally has been estimated at 175 million, with 3–4 million new infections occurring each year. Only about 20–45% of patients clear the virus in the acute phase. Of the remaining chronically infected patients, 20% will develop cirrhosis within a mean of 20 years. The mortality rate after cirrhosis has developed is 2-5% per year. End-stage liver disease due to HCV infection currently represents the major cause for liver transplantation in the Western world. 

Boehringer Ingelheim in Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) 

Boehringer Ingelheim has a dedicated HCV treatment development programme, called HCVersoTM, which at its core, aims to reverse the existing HCV paradigm. The ultimate aim of this programme is to deliver improved HCV treatment outcomes for patients whilst breaking down the barriers of current treatment regimens.

BI 201335 is an investigational oral HCV NS3/4A protease inhibitor, discovered from Boehringer Ingelheim’s own research and development, which has completed clinical trials through Phase IIb (SILEN-C studies). This Phase II programme supports the investigation of BI 201335 in Phase III trials currently ongoing. Boehringer Ingelheim is also developing BI 207127, an NS5B RNA-dependent polymerase inhibitor that has completed Phase I clinical trials. Phase II trials evaluating BI 207127 with BI 201335 in interferon-sparing regimens, both with and without ribavirin, are currently underway.

Boehringer Ingelheim The Boehringer Ingelheim group is one of the world’s 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, it operates globally with 145 affiliates and more than 42,000 employees. Since it was founded in 1885, the family-owned company has been committed to researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing novel products of high therapeutic value for human and veterinary medicine.

As a central element of its culture, Boehringer Ingelheim pledges to act socially responsible. Involvement in social projects, caring for employees and their families, and providing equal opportunities for all employees form the foundation of the global operations. Mutual cooperation and respect, as well as environmental protection and sustainability are intrinsic factors in all of Boehringer Ingelheim’s endeavors.

In 2010, Boehringer Ingelheim posted net sales of about 12.6 billion euro while spending almost 24% of net sales in its largest business segment Prescription Medicines on research and development. 

SVR = sustained viral response, referred to as HCV cure. SVR12 = sustained viral response at week 12 after treatment is completed. RVR = Rapid virologic response, undetectable viral RNA at week 4 of treatment (indicator of how patient will respond). eRVR = extended rapid virologic response, undetectable viral RNA enduring through week 12 of treatment.