Our key therapeutic areas

Neurodegenerative conditions and movement disorders such as Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Huntington’s Disease and Tardive Dyskinesia affect every aspect of life, with even the most mundane tasks requiring great courage and effort.

There are so many challenges - physical, financial and emotional - faced every day by people and their families, living with diseases of the central nervous system.

Research in neuroscience

We are committed to understanding and studying neurodegenerative disorders so that we can find molecules that allow us to change the course of disease and offer patients and healthcare professionals a wider choice of treatments.

We are also focused on innovation to help patients safely and effectively manage pain, which can severely affect their quality of life.

Migraine can have an enormous impact on a sufferer’s work, family and social life. Getting through the day requires great effort and is filled with challenges. 

It is estimated that there are currently more than a billion people with migraine on the planet, and there are over half a million people in Ireland with this condition.01 Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for migraine.

The financial burden of migraine is huge: It is estimated that migraine costs Irish businesses €252 million every year as a result of lost productivity with the average migraineur missing between 1.5 and 4.5 days from work annually.02 Despite the economic and societal impact of migraine, it remains a misunderstood and under managed condition.

Research into Migraine

Our work with patients, and our experience in this therapy area, means we are well placed to invest in extensive research into potential cures and medicines to help alleviate the many symptoms of migraine and other central nervous system disorders, to offer patients and healthcare professionals a wider choice of treatments.

380,000 people in Ireland03 and 300 million people globally - equivalent to almost the entire population of the USA - suffer from asthma. 04 Chronic respiratory diseases, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), kill more than four million people every year and affect hundreds of millions more. 04 The economic and societal burden is immense.

In respiratory we are focused on developing and providing treatment options that address two major issues:

• treatment adherence and compliance (in other words patient medication-taking behaviour)
• treating asthma that remains uncontrolled - despite the use of a standard of care therapy.

Adherence is a major issue in the effective management of asthma and COPD. Moreover, many patients have multiple devices for different parts of their treatment (maintenance and rescue therapies). This adds to the complexity that patients face.

Improper inhaler use can result in increased exacerbation (acute attacks) of asthma or COPD requiring emergency care.

Research in respiratory

The focus of our global research efforts in respiratory is on breath-activated inhaled therapies for asthma and COPD, where incorrect inhaler technique and non-adherence has been shown to be associated with poor asthma control, as well as targeted biologics for uncontrolled asthma.

Pain is one of the most significant healthcare problems the world faces today. It impacts hundreds of millions of people across the world, profoundly affecting their quality of life and costing society countless billions of pounds in treatment along with lost productivity.

Research for pain management

Making progress on pain management options is urgently needed. We are developing a focused pipeline of new drugs and novel treatments to meet patient and societal needs in pain management.

We are bringing more relief to patients by innovating in the research of our opioid-based treatments. At the same time, we are addressing some of the key challenges associated with opioids - their abuse and misuse.

When a patient is told they have cancer, their world – and the worlds of their families and loved ones – is turned upside down. In addition to coping with the illness itself, the side-effects of the prescribed treatment can also be harrowing and difficult. Yet, thankfully, there have been tremendous advancements in care in recent years.

Cancer impacts hundreds of millions of people across the world, profoundly affecting their quality of life and costing society countless billions of pounds in treatment.

Research in oncology

We invest in extensive research into potential cures and medicines to help alleviate the many symptoms of cancer, to offer patients and healthcare professionals a wider choice of treatments.

Our consumer healthcare range includes over-the-counter products available without a prescription. It features well-known brands in the baby care sector Sudocrem® and Infacol®.