About HDL and Cardiovascular disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally, greater than all causes of cancer combined. It represents an enormous area of unmet need and a commercial opportunity with $35 billion in 2009 global sales from the LDL-lowering segment alone.
According to the World Health Organization CVD is the number one cause of death globally. Each year, approximately 1.4 million people suffer from acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in the US alone. Approximately 795,000 are afflicted with a stroke in the US. Additionally, peripheral arterial disease affects up to 20% of Americans age 65 and older.
Current LDL-focused therapies for CVD only reduce cardiovascular events by 25-35%, leaving significant opportunity for further improvements. Moreover, recent clinical data suggests that LDL levels have little influence on the frequency of death or cardiovascular events observed for the high-risk acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients who are characterized by extensive vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque burden.
Therapies focused on increasing HDL, both acutely and chronically, represent the next frontier in the treatment of CVD. Clinical evidence supports the concept that elevating HDL can rapidly regress atherosclerotic plaque and reduce the risk of cardiovascular events.
"Cerenis is developing a portfolio of HDL therapies"
To address this significant unmet medical need, Cerenis is developing a portfolio of HDL therapies, including HDL mimetics for the rapid regression of atherosclerotic plaque in high-risk patients, and HDL elevators for patients with low HDL. Cerenis’ HDL mimetic (CER-001) has the potential to be the first to market recombinant HDL.