Winner
Transforming Care in Hereditary Angioedema
with support from Makara Health
Summary of work
Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare genetic disorder characterised by unpredictable episodes of painful swelling – if swellings affect the throat, they can be fatal. HAE has an impact on all aspects of life and is often misdiagnosed. There are an estimated 1,300 patients with HAE in the UK.
Research suggests patients ‘put up with’ relatively frequent attacks, accepting the disease burden as unavoidable, with some HCPs viewing attacks as ‘part of life’ for patients.
Takeda UK wanted to transform the standard of care – raising expectations for diagnosis, treatment and management.
Takeda has a comprehensive HAE portfolio with established medications Firazyr and Cinryze▼ and a recently launched, fortnightly prophylactic, Takhzyro▼, with the potential to reduce the number of attacks to zero.
A multichannel campaign was developed to engage immunology specialists, framed by the HAE Exchange Virtual Education Programme. The focus was on articulating the value Takhzyro can deliver to patients and examples of success were shared to provide early evidence. Patients were also supported by a host of non-branded educational resources developed in collaboration with HAE UK.
Additionally, in response to COVID-19 lockdown, Takeda introduced what it believes is a first-of-its-kind ‘at-home initiation’ treatment initiative.
Judges’ comments
Transforming Care in Hereditary Angioedema demonstrated clear evidence of a mindset shift in HCPs and potential changes in behaviour. It clearly sets out the potential for better clinical and health outcomes with a nice emphasis on execution and engagement.
