An experienced biopharmaceutical professional, Anna Richo oversees legal affairs, intellectual property, and compliance in her role as executive Vice President and general counsel of UCB in Brussels, Belgium. Earlier in her career, Anna Richo served as senior vice president and chief compliance officer of Amgen, Inc. In early June 2016, Amgen announced the results of its most recent Phase 2 clinical study that tested the effectiveness of an innovative new pharmaceutical. Called erenumab (or AMG 334), this drug focuses on the body’s Calcitonin-Gene-Related-Peptide (CGRP) receptor and prevents it from sending migraine pain signals to the brain. Amgen tested erenumab over the course of 12 weeks, analyzing 667 participants who were afflicted with up to 18 migraines each month. At the beginning of the clinical trial, the trial aimed to decrease the number of days on which patients experienced migraines, particularly within the last month of testing. To best determine erenumab’s effects, Amgen designed a study that randomized the participants, subcutaneously administering a placebo to some of them while others received one of two dose strengths of erenumab. The results were promising, as those who received doses of erenumab saw a migraine reduction of 6.6 days per month. Patients who received the placebo only experienced a 4.2-day-per-month decline. On the back of these results, Amgen will soon pursue Phase 3 studies and present erenumab to the medical community at an upcoming conference.
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Anna Richo is an attorney who has rendered her services as a counsel to several healthcare and medical companies including UCB, where she is also an executive vice president. Anna Richo was previously the senior vice president and chief compliance officer at Amgen, Inc. Both of the abovementioned companies figured in a press release by Amgen earlier this year as they announced the positive results of a phase 3 study which aimed to evaluate the effects of Romosozumab on men with Osteoporosis. The 3rd phase study, named placebo-controlled study evaluatIng the efficacy and safety of Romosozumab in treating men with osteoporosis, yielded data showing that the drug met the primary endpoint and actually demonstrated a significant increase in bone mineral density (BMD) among men with osteoporosis. The data were confirmed using a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. The secondary endpoints of the study were also met. Those who received Romosozumab showed significant increases in BMD at the femoral neck and total hip within a year. Moreover, results started showing as early as six months with a significant increase of BMD at the lumbar spine, femoral neck, and total hip compared to those who were on placebo. A graduate of the DePaul University, College of Law, Anna Richo has almost 25 years of experience in the bioscience and health care industries. Recognized by FiercePharma as one of the top 15 women in the industry in 2009, Anna Richo is currently the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of UCB. Prior to UCB, Anna Richo was Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Amgen Inc.
Dedicated to improving patients’ health or saving lives through innovative biotechnology, Amgen Inc., has been in business since 1980. Established on the principles of teamwork, quality, ethics, and communication, Amgen is committed to its science-based approach and strives to create value for stockholders, patients, and staff. With locations around the globe, Amgen has consistently ranked among the world’s top science employers. One of the first to develop therapeutic proteins able to precisely target disease, Amgen maintains a commitment to focusing on the biology of disease, allowing scientists to examine its molecular structure prior to considering which method or medicine will be the most effective. To that end, its research and development are guided by scientific innovations and investments to address serious illnesses. In addition to conducting wide range of ongoing clinical trials and developing effective medicines, Amgen offers patients its Amgen Assist program, which helps them pay for medications through reimbursement and other support options. After working with a number of leading pharmaceutical companies in the US, Anna Richo joined international biopharmaceutical firm UCB in Brussels, Belgium, in 2012. As UCB’s executive vice president and general counsel, Anna Richo is responsible for the legal, corporate compliance, and intellectual property departments at UCB.
Focused on creating treatments for immunology and central nervous system disorders, UCB engages in an extensive and complicated drug development process that can span between 10 and 12 years. UCB explains that it costs more than 800 million pounds to fully develop a new drug, with approximately 60 percent of that cost dedicated to rigorous clinical trials. During the clinical development process, UCB conducts three trial phases that involve an increasing number of patients in order to explore drug efficacy, safety, and side effects. According to the company, new drugs are chosen from thousands of substances that could potentially treat a certain condition, but for a wide range of reasons, fewer than one or two substances per 10,000 analyzed succeed in reaching the market with authorization for patient use. |
AuthorAs of November 1, 2012, Anna Richo became Executive Vice President and General Counsel of UCB, a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. Archives
August 2018
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