Veterinary oncology experts from Europe, Japan and the US meet in Germany

Ingelheim, Germany, Mon, 05/20/2019 - 08:00

Veterinary oncology experts meet prior to the European Society of Veterinary Oncology Congress in Hofheim, Germany
The collaboration between Boehringer Ingelheim and the Veterinary Oncology Advisory Board focuses on developing unparalleled therapeutic solutions for the veterinary community and establishing new standards of care

Ingelheim, Germany, 20 May 2019 – Dogs and cats are enjoying longer lifespans thanks to better care, and veterinarians are seeing more and more diseases, including cancer. Cancer is the leading disease-related cause of death in dogs and cats¹, and can be found in both younger and senior pets, with one in four dying of cancer².

Cancer therapy can be performed either at the general practitioner’s clinic or via referral to an oncology specialist. Treatment for cancer generally involves surgical excision of a tumour, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy or a combination of these therapies.

Most of the oncology products administered to dogs and cats are human drugs³. Although several products have been approved to treat cancer in pets in the past 10 years, the oncology portfolio registered for use in animals is still limited.

The animal health division of Boehringer Ingelheim, with its rich expertise in vaccines and pharmaceuticals, is focusing on generating new solutions, researching and developing specific technologies for cancer therapy in pets.

"Therefore, we licensed ONCEPT^TM, the first immuno-therapeutic range in pets⁴," shared Dr Saskia Kley, Global Head of BIAH Pet Vet Therapeutics. "Boehringer Ingelheim creates value through innovation and continues to assess novel technology opportunities by leveraging our unique position of one of the leaders in both animal health and human pharma markets."

In addition, to develop convenient therapeutic solutions for the veterinary community and to establish new standards of care, Boehringer Ingelheim is supporting the Veterinary Oncology Advisory Board (VOAB), a select group of experts in veterinary oncology from the US, Europe and Japan.

The VOAB was created in 2014 with an original remit to develop research around nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in oncology (supported by clinical trials). Over the years, the VOAB mission expanded to promote new standards of care in pet oncology for general practitioners and to advise the industry regarding its new product development.

The well-known specialists who will gather in Hofheim in May 2019 are Drs Felisbina Luisa Queiroga, Dolores Perez Alenza, Annika Tranaeus-Rowe, Pachi Clemente, Gerry Polton, Martin Kessler, Peter Vajdovich, Didier Lanore, Juan Borrego, Dariusz Jagielski, Philip Bergman, Craig Clifford, and Tetsuya Kobayashi.

Dr Gerry Polton, VOAB Chairman, stated: "It is a pleasure to be invited to participate in this illustrious group. We, the Board members and Boehringer Ingelheim, have a shared ambition, a shared passion, namely to improve outcomes for all pets with cancer, through a combination of clear thinking, coordinated action and education."

This VOAB will meet on 21-22 May 2019 prior to the Congress of the European Society of Veterinary Oncology (ESVONC), taking place in Hofheim am Taunus on 23-25 May 2019. This is a homecoming for ESVONC, since the one of the first ESVONC meeting was held there 15 years ago in the basement of Tierklinik Hofheim. Boehringer Ingelheim is platinum sponsor of 2019 ESVONC Congress.

Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Business Unit

Boehringer Ingelheim is the second largest animal health business in the world, with net sales of almost 4 billion euros in 2018 and presence in more than 150 markets.

Across the globe, our 10,000 employees create the future of animal wellbeing through their daily work. We believe in prevention over treatment and therefore, we focus on developing innovative solutions in the field of vaccines, parasiticides and therapeutics. With a large portfolio of advanced, preventive healthcare products, tools and services, we support our customers in taking care of the health of their animals.

For more information visit: www.boehringer-ingelheim.com/animal-health/overview.

Boehringer Ingelheim

Improving the health of humans and animals is the goal of the research-driven pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim. The focus in doing so is on diseases for which no satisfactory treatment option exists to date. The company therefore concentrates on developing innovative therapies that can extend patients’ lives. In animal health, Boehringer Ingelheim stands for advanced prevention.

Family-owned since it was established in 1885, Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the pharmaceutical industry’s top 20 companies. Some 50,000 employees create value through innovation daily for the three business areas human pharmaceuticals, animal health and biopharmaceuticals. In 2018, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of around 17.5 billion euros. R&D expenditure of almost 3.2 billion euros, corresponded to 18.1 per cent of net sales.

As a family-owned company, Boehringer Ingelheim plans in generations and focuses on long-term success. The company therefore aims at organic growth from its own resources with simultaneous openness to partnerships and strategic alliances in research. In everything it does, Boehringer Ingelheim naturally adopts responsibility towards mankind and the environment.

More information about Boehringer Ingelheim can be found on www.boehringer-ingelheim.com or in our annual report: http://annualreport.boehringer-ingelheim.com.

Intended audiences:

This press release is issued from our Corporate Headquarters in Ingelheim, Germany and is intended to provide information about our global business. Please be aware that information relating to the approval status and labels of approved products may vary from country to country, and a country-specific press release on this topic may have been issued in the countries where we do business.