With a legacy of over 100 years dedicated to therapeutic innovation, BIAL’s involvement in OTXL underscores its strategic vision to address the unmet needs of patients living with rare diseases. The OTXL initiative, launched in June 2024, is a non-profit biotech focused on reviving and accelerating the development of promising therapies that had previously stalled in clinical trials due to financial and market barriers.

As a founding member, BIAL will play a pivotal role in identifying, supporting, and commercializing several therapeutic programs through OTXL. These programs, aimed at ultra-rare conditions, are expected to be announced in the coming months. The initial focus will be on two to three therapies for diseases with a particularly high unmet medical need, with plans to expand further as revenue from early successes is reinvested into additional initiatives.

The partnership reflects BIAL’s unwavering dedication to working collaboratively across the global pharmaceutical and biotech ecosystem, including contract research organizations, development and manufacturing partners, artificial intelligence innovators, and academia. This collaborative approach aligns with BIAL’s longstanding strategy of forging alliances to bring life-changing solutions to patients worldwide.

The challenge of rare diseases is immense: approximately 300 million people worldwide; half of them children suffer from more than 11,000 known rare diseases, yet 95% of these conditions remain without approved treatments. BIAL’s partnership with OTXL represents a bold step towards closing this gap by ensuring that promising science does not remain on the sidelines.

This initiative also reinforces BIAL’s position as a beacon of Portuguese pharmaceutical excellence. The company’s consistent investment in R&D which is more than 20% of its annual revenue, has fueled pioneering work in neurosciences and rare diseases, positioning Portugal as a center of pharmaceutical innovation. From its headquarters and R&D hub in Portugal, BIAL’s impact spans over 50 countries, bringing its cutting-edge therapies to patients in Europe, the USA, and emerging markets.

Through this partnership, BIAL is not only leading driving innovation but also shaping a more sustainable and patient-centered model for developing treatments for ultra-rare diseases. By joining forces with OTXL and other stakeholders, BIAL exemplifies the collaborative spirit necessary to tackle the unique challenges of rare disease research and commercialization.

With its century-long legacy, robust international presence, and unwavering focus on therapeutic innovation, BIAL continues to lead the way in Portugal’s pharmaceutical landscape as no one else, and now, in the fight against some of the world’s most challenging and neglected diseases.

Author

Paulo Lopes is a multi-talent Portuguese citizen who made his Master of Economics in Switzerland and studied law at Lusófona in Lisbon - CEO of Casaiberia in Lisbon and Algarve.

Paulo Lopes