29th October, 2013, London and Shanghai, Guilin Pharma and Idis announced today that Artesun^® (artesunate for injection) 60mg vials are now available to patients outside of those countries in which it is either commercially available or supplied through the World Health Organization. Controlled, ethical access is provided through an Idis Access Program, allowing physicians around the world to obtain access for their patients to investigational drugs or drugs not approved in their country.

Administered intravenously or intramuscularly, Artesun^® is approved in China (and recommended by World Health Organization) for the treatment of severe malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum, in adults and children. It is also listed as a WHO Prequalified Medicinal Product.

"We are delighted to be implementing this secure supply route for patients in need around the world" said Mr Yu Zhemin, Chairman of Guilin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. "This programme allows us to expand access, safely and ethically outside of countries where it is currently available. Working with Idis to achieve this means that prescribers and patients can have regulated access to this potentially life-saving medicine when they need it.”

Charles Simmons, President of Established Brands at Idis said of the partnership “Until now there has not been a secure, centralized way to access injectable artesunate except in a few countries where it is commercially available or those served by WHO. Patients are at the heart of what we do at Idis and we are delighted to partner with Guilin to provide this vital bridge so that no patient is left untreated".

Licensed healthcare professionals outside of China, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Pakistan, Peru and the African Continent with patients who might benefit from injectable artesunate should contact Idis directly using the following contact details:


About Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite. People with malaria often experience fever, chills, and flu-like illness. Left untreated, they may develop severe complications and die. In 2010 an estimated 219 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide and 660,000 people died, most (91%) in the African Region (Source: CDC website, August 2013).


About Guilin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd

Established in 1950’s, Guilin Pharma is a professional pharmaceutical enterprise specialised in researching, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceutical products. The company produces more than 200 chemical medicines in different dosage forms such as tablets, capsules, and injections.
As the first Chinese pharmaceutical manufacturer approved by the World Health Organization, Guilin Pharma is also China’s largest artemisinin based anti-malarial drug producer with the world’s most integrated artemisinin Industry value chain
So far, products of Guilin Pharma have been registered and marketed in more than 30 countries internationally. As a World Health Organization approved antimalarial producer, Guilin Pharma has supplied over 200,000,000 oral treatments of its artemisinin based anti-malaria drugs to the world malaria campaign.
Guilin Pharma also works with international NGOs, academic institutions and the local malaria control programs on training project to improve the medical skills of local medical staff, so as to reduce malaria mortality in African children.
Guilin Pharma believes in a management philosophy of “quality comes first”. It continuously improves its production process with international Good Manufacturing Practices Standards so as to supply high quality pharmaceuticals to people who use its products.

About Idis
According to introduction, Idis has 25 years’ experience of partnering with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to create regulatory-compliant, ethical access to medicines for healthcare professionals and their patients with unmet medical needs. Since 1987, Idis has developed and managed access to thousands of medicines from every therapeutic category, impacting the lives of hundreds of thousands of patients in countries around the world.

Idis leverages decades of experience, regulatory insight, and a thorough understanding of local and global requirements to create access to medicines at every stage of a product’s lifecycle from pre-approval to market exit, and in times of unexpected production shortages.
The company’s European headquarters are located in Weybridge, United Kingdom, and North American headquarters are located in Princeton, NJ.

For more information about Idis please visit www.idispharma.com.