The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (IFPMA) has announced plans to develop awareness of psoriasis, a disease that affects 125 million people worldwide.
With its report ‘Bringing Psoriasis Into the Light’, the IFPMA is calling for action in three key areas: awareness, research and access.
To improve awareness, the IFPMA wants organisations to ‘intensify and co-ordinate advocacy efforts to increase awareness of the public health impact of psoriasis’. It is calling for concerted efforts by public health organisations at all levels.
Emphasising the global nature of the problem while providing materials easily adaptable for local use is also key, said the IFPMA. It is also calling for better communication of the impact of psoriasis on economic activity, for example, in job markets or health and social policies.
The IFPMA is also calling for concerted new research across specialties; from molecular science to psychology and economics, to address ‘the halo of impaired physical and psychological health surrounding psoriasis’.
More data is needed on the epidemiology and socioeconomic impact of the disease, the report concluded, in particular in non-Western societies and in under-researched groups such as children.
In addition, the IFPMA is pushing for greater research efforts into the impact on long-term cardiovascular risk from moderate and severe forms of psoriasis, and investment in a greater understanding of the psychosocial consequences of psoriasis for affected individuals and caregivers.
Global access to current effective therapies and to wider healthcare services such as counselling and self-care programmes must also be improved, found the IFPMA.
In addition to publishing the report, the IFPMA has welcomed the upcoming ministerial talks for the approval of a historic resolution on psoriasis at the 67th World Health Assembly, taking place in Geneva from 19 – 24 May.