Lundbeck announces second annual campaign to raise awareness on rare diseases

Today, Lundbeck announced its second annual Raise Your Hand to Fight Rare Diseases campaign in support of Rare Disease Day, a worldwide observance each year on February 28 to raise awareness of rare diseases. Through an online public awareness initiative, Lundbeck will donate research dollars to the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD), the sponsor of Rare Disease Day in the United States.

When an individual clicks the "Raise Your Hand" icon posted on the NORD Rare Disease Day website (www.rarediseaseday.us), Lundbeck will make an unrestricted donation to NORD for rare disease research. Lundbeck asks people to share information about the campaign through Facebook and Twitter to prompt others to participate and help generate rare disease awareness.

"Lundbeck is committed to ongoing research and awareness in the rare disease community as part of our broader effort to address unmet medical needs," said Staffan Schüberg, president of Lundbeck Inc. "With nearly 7,000 rare diseases affecting approximately 30 million Americans, it becomes clear that, collectively, rare diseases are not that uncommon. Through this campaign, we hope to elevate the impact rare diseases have on Americans by generating as big a show of hands as possible."

As a result of last year's campaign, which generated more than 4,000 clicks on the "Raise Your Hand" icon and included an additional gift from Lundbeck, an unrestricted $10,000 donation was made to the NORD general research fund. NORD used this donation to provide a research grant to Eric Lancaster, MD, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Lancaster is studying stiff-person syndrome, a rare acquired neurological disorder that is believed to affect approximately one in 1 million people and characterized by muscle rigidity, heightened sensitivity to stimuli and muscle spasms.

"We're committed to supporting people affected by rare diseases on February 28 and throughout the year," said Peter L. Saltonstall, NORD president and CEO. "Continued partnership and support from organizations like Lundbeck make it possible for us to continue our efforts to support increased understanding of rare diseases, new treatments and maybe even a cure for certain types of rare diseases."