Pfizer and China Cardiovascular Health Alliance Launch "China Model Project for Special Etiologies of Heart Failure"

Scientific Exploration, Protecting the Future of Rare Diseases

ShanghaiNovember 8, 2022PR Newswire -- At the Fifth China International Import Expo, Pfizer Rare Disease returned to the "CIIE Appointment" with the theme of "Science for Victory, Love for Rare Diseases," fully demonstrating Pfizer's commitment to deeply cultivating the rare disease field and bringing innovative changes to the diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases in China. Pfizer and the Chinese Cardiovascular Health Alliance launched a strategic cooperation. Both parties will jointly initiate the "Construction Project of the Chinese Model for Special Causes of Heart Failure." Through exploring special causes of heart failure in China, they will summarize and reflect on the current state of diagnosis and treatment of transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM) in China, promote a comprehensive improvement in clinical doctors' awareness, assist in cause-based diagnosis and treatment of heart failure, and drive the construction of a Chinese model system for diagnosis and treatment of special causes of heart failure represented by ATTR-CM.

At the Fifth CIIE, the Special Cause of Heart Failure China Model Construction Project was officially launched. (From left to right: Pan Hui, Acting Head of ATTR Therapeutic Area Team, Rare Disease Division, Pfizer Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group, China; Dr. Cao Junyang, Chief Medical Officer and Vice President, Pfizer Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group, China; Qian Yun, Vice President, Market Access Head, Pfizer Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group, China; Professor Zhou Jingmin, Deputy Chief of Cardiology, Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University; Song Faxian, General Manager, Rare Disease Division, Pfizer Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group, China; Guo Jin, Head of Communications, Pfizer China.)

Vice Chairman of the China Cardiovascular Health Alliance, President of the Cardiovascular Health Research Institute of Suzhou Industrial Park, and Professor Yong Huo from the First Hospital of Peking University; Chairman of the China Heart Failure Center Alliance and Director of the Heart Center at Beijing Hospital, Professor Jiefu Yang; Executive Secretary General of the China Cardiovascular Health Alliance, Wenming Zeng; Deputy Chief of Cardiology at Zhongshan Hospital of Fudan University, Professor Jingmin Zhou; President of Pfizer Global Biopharmaceuticals Commercial Group, China Region, Jean-Christophe Pointeau; General Manager of the Rare Disease Division, China Region, Pfizer Global Biopharmaceuticals Commercial Group, Faxian Song, attended the conference through a combination of online and offline methods. Together, they witnessed the official launch of the "Special Causes of Heart Failure: Construction Project of the China Model" and shared valuable experiences in the development of diagnosis and treatment for special causes of heart failure in China.

Peng Zhenke, President of Pfizer's Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group in China, stated: "Rare diseases are a field that Pfizer has long been committed to and continuously invested in. Guided by the concept of 'Science for Victory, Love for Rare,' Pfizer leverages its profound expertise and outstanding insights to actively explore打通 rare disease diagnosis and treatment across the entire chain, leading industry development. Through a strategic collaboration with the Chinese Cardiovascular Health Alliance, both parties will take concrete actions to drive breakthroughs in the diagnosis and treatment of single rare diseases, benefiting more ATTR-CM patients in China and contributing to the improvement of overall heart failure diagnosis and treatment standards as well as reducing cardiovascular mortality."

Peng Zhenke, President of Pfizer Global Biopharmaceuticals Commercial Group, China Region

Powerful Collaboration to Advance the Construction of a Chinese Model for Special Causes of Heart Failure

Heart failure is a severe manifestation or advanced stage of various heart diseases. With the improvement of medical standards, the survival period of patients with heart disease has been extended, which has also led to a continuous increase in the prevalence of heart failure in China. Relevant data shows that there are 330 million cardiovascular disease patients in China, and up to 8.9 million heart failure patients.^[1]. As a rare, progressive infiltrative cardiomyopathy, ATTR-CM has symptoms very similar to those of common heart failure in clinical practice.^[2]。

Professor Yong Huo stated: "Heart failure is considered a major public health challenge in the cardiovascular field in the 21st century. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure in China. However, there remains a considerable number of patients who suffer from specific causes with low clinical specificity, such as ATTR-CM. These patients often shuttle between multiple hospitals and departments, enduring great hardship. It is essential to develop a China-specific model for identifying unique causes of heart failure, explore different etiologies of heart failure, implement targeted interventions, and enhance the precise diagnostic capabilities of lower-level hospitals regarding special causes like ATTR-CM. By streamlining the entire 'screening-diagnosis-treatment' chain, we can further improve the overall level of heart failure diagnosis and treatment."

As the aging population intensifies, the annual incidence of heart failure in the elderly in China is on a continuous rise. Professor Yang Jiefu emphasized: "When dealing with heart failure patients, it is crucial to actively utilize multidisciplinary collaboration and digital tools for auxiliary examinations. Strengthening the precise screening of heart failure causes in the Chinese elderly, especially special causes such as ATTR-CM, plays a significant role in the diagnosis, clinical evaluation, medication strategies, and prognosis assessment of heart failure patients."

Therefore, Pfizer has joined hands with the Chinese Cardiovascular Health Alliance to launch this collaboration. Zeng Wenming pointed out: "The Chinese Cardiovascular Health Alliance is at the forefront of China's cardiovascular prevention and control efforts. This collaboration with Pfizer will not only work towards building a China-specific model for special causes of heart failure but also enhance the precision of etiological diagnosis of heart failure in China, bringing continuous and standardized treatment benefits to more Chinese patients with special causes of heart failure, especially those with ATTR-CM."

Early Diagnosis and Early Screening, Precise DiagnosisSpecial causes of heart failure such as ATTR-CM

To strengthen the implementation of diagnostic and treatment pathways, including preventive screening and direct referral for heart failure diseases such as ATTR-CM, and to enhance the standardization and homogenization of medical services, the China Model Construction Project for Special Causes of Heart Failure focuses on the front-end screening process. By addressing the root causes, the project aims to improve the diagnosis and treatment rate of heart failure while reinforcing systematic judgment in subsequent patient care.

"The number of heart failure patients in China continues to rise, and the causes of heart failure are complex. How to accurately identify the causes of heart failure at an early stage and adopt appropriate treatment strategies is one of the major challenges currently facing heart failure diagnosis and treatment in China," said Professor Zhou Jingmin. "As a potential cause of heart failure, ATTR-CM now has targeted treatment options, which is good news for heart failure patients in China. Conducting targeted screening for ATTR-CM among heart failure patients, especially the elderly population, and improving diagnostic efficiency will not only enhance the precision treatment for ATTR-CM patients but also play a key role in promoting the development of a China-specific model for special heart failure etiologies."

In recent years, Pfizer has maintained a long-term cooperative relationship with the Chinese Cardiovascular Health Alliance, achieving a series of significant results in many aspects, such as: improving the quality of clinical diagnosis and treatment of heart failure and the standardization of etiological diagnosis, establishing quality control standards for heart failure, enhancing the homogenization of heart failure patient management and diagnostic treatment levels, supporting the construction of cardiovascular specialties and multi-disciplinary comprehensive diagnosis and treatment (MDT) capabilities, and improving the management level of clinical doctors for heart failure patients.

"Pfizer has continuously pioneered in the rare disease field to address the unmet needs of more Chinese patients. As a highly representative innovative approach to the diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases, ATTR-CM requires打通诊断，治疗，管理以及双向转诊罕见病诊疗链路多环节，分级诊疗等形成全链路闭环，从而推动罕见病精准、规范化诊疗." Emphasized Song Faxian, General Manager of Pfizer's Rare Disease Division in China, part of Pfizer’s Global Biopharmaceutical Commercial Group, "Pfizer remains committed to ‘restarting new lives for every rare disease patient,’ precisely identifying pain points of rare disease patients, focusing efforts on addressing bottlenecks in the diagnostic and therapeutic pathways, solving targeted difficulties, actively exploring and establishing a single-disease diagnostic and treatment system for rare diseases, promoting the establishment of regional ‘medical alliances,’ enhancing the effectiveness and convenience of diagnosis and treatment for heart failure patients with special etiologies like ATTR-CM, accelerating early screening, early diagnosis, and early treatment for patients, and advancing the realization of cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment goals outlined in ‘Healthy China 2030.’"

^{[1] National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases "China Cardiovascular Health and Disease Report 2021"
[2] Heart Failure Group of the Cardiovascular Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, Editorial Board of the Chinese Journal of Cardiology. Chinese Expert Consensus on Diagnosis and Treatment of Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy [J]. Chinese Journal of Cardiology, 2021, 04: 324-332.}