Tillotts Pharma announces results of new survey in UC, introduces UCandME toolbox at ECCO 2015

Tillotts Pharma announced today results from a new European survey that revealed more than 9 out of 10 people with ulcerative colitis (UC) have low to medium adherence to their medication, putting them at five times greater risk of relapse. Based on the findings of the survey, Tillotts partnered with a scientific committee of leading medical experts to develop the UCandME™ toolbox to further support the gastroenterology community in improving patient adherence and education. The data were presented today at the 10^th Congress of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO) in Barcelona, Spain.

Healthcare professionals can access the password and username protected UCandME™ toolbox at www.ucandme.org.

UC is one of several inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) and involves chronic inflammation of the bowel. Unlike Crohn’s disease, which can occur anywhere along the digestive tract, UC only affects the colon and rectum. Symptoms vary, but often include abdominal pain and diarrhea. Prevalence and diagnosis of UC continues to rise.

The survey was conducted in order to understand the needs, concerns and attitudes of people with UC. 507 people with UC and 27 healthcare professionals from the UK, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Ireland and the Czech Republic were interviewed.

There were multiple reasons for non-adherence to medication, such as:

• Patients forgetting to take their medication (51 percent)
• Stopping medication once they felt better (21 percent)
• Fear of side effects (19 percent)

The majority of healthcare professionals believed that understanding their patients’ needs and concerns help them better understand and manage their patients.

“If left untreated, UC can deteriorate over time, leading to an increased severity of symptoms, more frequent relapses, and possibly surgery,” said Professor Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet, chair of the UCandME™ scientific committee and head of the IBD unit at Nancy University Hospital, France. “UCandME™ provides an incredibly valuable toolbox, which can help us offer patients the education they need to achieve better results in UC management.”

The UCandME™ toolbox features a wide range of digital and physical resources, including a questionnaire to define patient needs and concerns and an educational pack that can be tailored to individuals. The program was developed in partnership with the UCandME™ scientific committee composed of leading medical experts. It is being launched on a global level at ECCO 2015 and will be made available in European countries throughout 2015 and 2016.

“In Europe, up to three million people suffer from IBDs, such as UC, which can strongly reduce their quality of life,” said Mattias Norrman, Chief Operations Officer and Member of the Executive Committee at Tillotts Pharma. “Tillotts is committed to partnering with healthcare professionals to provide support, beyond medication, that can help to improve outcomes for the millions of people with gastrointestinal diseases.”