"This ruling is a setback for patients that will hinder medical progress for diseases without effective treatment options, " he said.

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"This ruling is a setback for patients that will hinder medical progress for diseases without effective treatment options, " said Ranjit Shahani, vice-chairman and managing director of Novartis India.

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This reduces the inflammation associated with many diseases, including strokes and arthritis, without suppressing the immune system.

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Without this drug, the costs of caring for people with rare diseases like this can run into the millions.

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Outside the cluster of cinder block structures that make up Kano's Infectious Diseases Hospital, hundreds of sick children are lined up, awaiting treatment from Doctors Without Borders, the nonprofit group, which has set up a tent on hospital grounds.

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This is a game changer in sight-affecting diseases, that represents a huge step forward for the field and for these patients who were without any available treatment options until now.

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The second is that potential profits for developing successful drugs to treat these diseases are enormous and, thus, pharmacuetical companies will keep working to find solutions with or without government support.

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But without this elephant's input of new money and ideas, the battle-front against malaria and other deadly diseases might present an even worse picture, especially if the field were left to governments and inter-governmental bodies.

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