Janssen Forms New Group

Janssen, the pharmaceutical companies of Johnson & Johnson, has formed Janssen Global Public Health (Janssen GPH), a new group aimed at unifying Janssen’s R&D to deliver new medicines to address unmet public health needs. Janssen GPH will partner with other organizations within the company to advance its global public health goals. 

Adrian Thomas, M.D., vice president of Global Market Access, Global Commercial Strategy Operations, and Global Public Health, and Wim Parys, M.D., vice president, R&D Global Public Health, will jointly lead Janssen GPH. Janssen GPH will be responsible for clinical and product development and creating and implementing new strategies for its portfolio of pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, and services for diseases impacting resource-limited countries and emerging markets.
 
The products include: SIRTURO, approved by the FDA as a combination therapy in adults with pulmonary multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB); long-acting rilpivirine, an injectable version of the HIV medicine; Dapivirine microbicidal ring, an investigational HIV medicine for use as a monthly vaginal microbicidal ring to prevent sexual transmission of HIV; reformulated flubendazole, a potential new treatment against parasites that cause elephantiasis and river blindness; and reformulated mebendazole, a chewable formulation of VERMOX to treat intestinal worms in young children.
 
Additionally, Janssen GPH will work on the UNITE Project, a consortium between Janssen and several partners with expertise in HIV/AIDS, working to improve health outcomes for people living with HIV via the use of mobile technologies (mHealth).
 
“We are applying our expertise where we can make the biggest impact,” said Dr. Thomas. “Our goal is to address seemingly intractable health challenges in new and unexpected ways.”