Osteoporosis is a major healthcare problem.

Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by low bone mass and structural deterioration of bone tissue, leading to an increase in fractures.

Osteoporosis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in elderly people worldwide. In the U.S. alone, an estimated 44 million men and women (55% of people 50 years of age and older) have osteoporosis or low bone-mineral density, placing them at increased risk for osteoporosis.

The debility resulting from osteoporosis has substantial costs. Loss of mobility, admission to nursing homes, and dependence on caregivers are all common consequences of osteoporosis. Hip fractures are the most serious types of osteoporotic fractures and can lead to lasting immobility. Estimated expenditures for treating the more than 2 million fractures that occur annually in the U.S. from osteoporosis exceed $19 billion—more than $52 million each day—and the number of fractures due to osteoporosis is expected to rise to more than 3 million by 2025. The cost is high in terms of both dollars and quality of life: Twenty percent of hip-fracture patients enter long-term care.

The prevalence of osteoporotic fractures is growing. The aging of the population is just one driver of an increase in cases. Osteoporosis is also increasing from the use of drugs that induce bone loss, such as chronic use of glucocorticoids for asthma, aromatase inhibitors that are increasingly used for breast cancer, and the hormone therapies used for prostate cancer.

The need for new osteoporosis drugs 

There are two main types of drugs available to treat osteoporosis: Anti-resorptive agents such as bisphosphonates, including Actonel®, Boniva®, and Fosamax®, as well as calcitonins and selective estrogen receptor modulators; and anabolic (bone-building) agents. The only approved anabolic therapy in the U.S. that increases bone mineral density (BMD) into the normal range is Forteo®, a daily injection of parathyroid hormone (hPTH(1 34), with reported worldwide sales of $950 million in 2011.

While currently available drugs have proven efficacious in increasing bone mass and reducing the incidence of fractures, there remains a significant need for new drugs that can build bone to prevent fractures with a high degree of long-term safety and convenience. Radius is focused on developing new classes of drugs to address these needs.


Sources: National Osteoporosis Foundation, World Health Organization, International Osteoporosis Foundation, WebMD, National Institutes of Health, Osteoporosis International