Yuhan Corporation Joins "International Gaucher Disease Day" Campaign

"Committed to Developing Innovative Therapies"

Yuhan Corporation announced on October 21 that it is joining the global campaign for "2025 International Gaucher Disease Day," which is taking place for a month starting from October 1.

Yuhan Corporation Headquarters, Dongjak-gu, Seoul. Yuhan Corporation

International Gaucher Disease Day (IGD) was established in 2014 by the International Gaucher Alliance (IGA) to raise awareness of the rare disease Gaucher disease among patients, patient organizations, healthcare professionals, researchers, and the industry worldwide.

This year, the campaign period has been extended to a month, under the theme "Recognize the Symptoms and Shorten the Diagnostic Journey." The campaign aims to highlight the importance of early recognition of initial symptoms of Gaucher disease, reduce the burden caused by delayed diagnosis, and improve access to appropriate treatment. Yuhan Corporation is participating in the campaign in various ways, such as sharing IGD messages on its health information channel "Geongangui Beot," and posting IGD campaign banners on the personal social media accounts and email signatures of relevant department employees.

Gaucher disease is a rare inherited metabolic disorder, affecting around 20,000 people worldwide and fewer than 100 patients domestically. The disease is caused by a deficiency or dysfunction of the enzyme glucocerebrosidase, which breaks down cellular waste. As a result, a lipid (fatty substance) called glucosylceramide (GL1) accumulates, leading to cellular damage.

Major symptoms include enlargement of the spleen and liver, anemia, thrombocytopenia, bone-related symptoms, and growth retardation. Certain types may also present neurological symptoms such as cognitive impairment, oculomotor dysfunction, and gait disturbances.

Yuhan Corporation is developing a candidate treatment for Gaucher disease, YH35995, which is a glucosylceramide synthase (GCS) inhibitor that suppresses the production of GL1, the root cause of the disease. It is being developed as a small-molecule oral therapy. Currently, a Phase 1 clinical trial is underway in healthy adult males, evaluating safety, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) as the dosage is gradually increased.

Kim Yeolhong, Head of R&D at Yuhan Corporation, stated, "For Gaucher disease patients, it is crucial to prevent irreversible organ damage through accurate early diagnosis and prompt treatment at specialized medical institutions." He added, "By participating in this campaign, we hope to raise awareness in Korea about patients who have symptoms but have not yet been diagnosed or treated, and to provide an opportunity for our employees to further realize patient-centered values based on a deeper understanding of the disease."

He continued, "Yuhan Corporation is dedicated to developing innovative therapies to address the unmet medical needs of Gaucher disease patients through a patient-centered approach, and we will continue our efforts to make a tangible contribution to improving patients' quality of life."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.