Patients Diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis who Report Requesting a Specific Brand of Medication Primarily Ask For Remicade and Humira, and These Requests are Virtually Always Honored, According to a Recent BioTrends Report

EXTON, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioTrends Research Group, one of the world’s leading research and advisory firms for specialized biopharmaceutical issues, finds that nearly 40 percent of ulcerative colitis (UC) patients visited three or more specialists before eventually being diagnosed with UC. Gastroenterologists are the final diagnosing physicians in 90 percent of patients and 83 percent of patients recall that a colonoscopy was performed in order to confirm a diagnosis of UC. Though UC patients are diagnosed an average of five months after visiting a physician for their initial symptoms, 90 percent were prescribed a pharmacotherapy immediately at diagnosis.

Most patients diagnosed with UC view themselves as key decision-makers in the management and treatment of their disease in equal partnership with their gastroenterologist. However, only one-fifth of the sampled patients report discussing treatment options or changes at their last physician visit and 13 percent have requested a specific brand of medication for their UC treatment in the past. Among the brand requests, 19 percent have asked their physician to be treated with Janssen Biotech’s Remicade, and 17 percent have requested to be treated with Abbott’s Humira, appeals that are virtually always honored.

In terms of treatment satisfaction, nearly three-quarters of biologics-treated UC patients, two-thirds of 5-ASA treated patients, and over half of all immunomodulator treated patients report high satisfaction with their regimen; however, when asked about desired improvements, unaided, patients report desires for treatments to be safer with less side effects and with less frequent administration.

Despite the fact that over half of the surveyed UC patients report good to great knowledge and understanding of their disease, the vast majority of patients are not aware of any products currently in development. Among the few patients who are aware of products in development, when aided, they are most familiar with Abbott’s Humira.

PatientTrends: Ulcerative Colitis (U.S.) is a syndicated report that provides detailed information regarding UC patients’ path to diagnosis and treatment and their perception of their disease and treatment, how patients’ satisfaction with their current UC treatments compares with their expectations for drug treatment, and what attributes of UC patients’ disease and treatment contribute to their brand satisfaction, advocacy, and loyalty. The 2012 survey was fielded in June 2012 with 262 UC patients in the U.S. In addition, the voice of the patient is captured through 15 in-depth interviews conducted with survey respondents, allowing for a more detailed understanding of the impact of UC on patients’ lives.

About BioTrends Research Group, LLC

BioTrends Research Group, LLC provides syndicated and custom market research to pharmaceutical manufacturers competing in clinically evolving, specialty pharmaceutical markets. For information on BioTrends publications and research capabilities, please contact us at [phone] or www.bio-trends.com.

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