The Wall Street Journal has just awarded Kalydeco™, the first drug to address the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis, the 2012 Technology Innovation Award in the Medicine and Biotech category. The awards recognize technological breakthroughs that are “game-changers” or have a wide impact in their field and beyond.
Kalydeco was developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. in collaboration with the CF Foundation, which provided significant funding support of $75 million to Vertex's cystic fibrosis program. The drug was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (
“We are thrilled that this innovation in CF treatment is already transforming the lives of hundreds of people with the disease,” said Robert J. Beall, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. “Kalydeco opens exciting new doors to the research and drug development that may ultimately help us treat all people with cystic fibrosis.”
The Wall Street Journal received 536 applications from more than two dozen countries. A team of Journal editors and reporters reviewed the entries and forwarded 172 to an independent panel of judges from venture-capital firms, universities and companies. From that pool, the judges chose a total of 37 winners and runners-up in 18 categories.
Winners were selected for innovating beyond the
Kalydeco is the latest example of the CF Foundation's innovative venture philanthropy model, which has raised and invested hundreds of millions of dollars to help develop nearly every CF drug and therapy available today.