MDS Nordion (ticker: MDS.TO, exchange: Toronto Stock Exchange (.TO)) News Release - 4/12/2005
MDS Pharma Services Hosts Grand Opening of Expanded Central Lab Facility in Singapore
(Singapore. April 12, 2005) – MDS Pharma Services, a leading provider of innovative drug discovery and development solutions, hosted a grand opening event for its newly expanded central lab facility in Singapore on Monday, April 11. The expansion grand opening included a ribbon-cutting ceremony, a lion dance to bring good fortune and facility tours. A gala dinner followed at the Raffles City Convention Centre. “This event highlights our Singapore facility's integral role in MDS Pharma Services' continual growth worldwide,” said Alan Horgan, group vice president, Late Stage Development for MDS Pharma Services. “We are paving the way for a significant presence in the Asia-Pacific region.” Singaporean guests of honor present at the event included His Excellency Alan Virtue, High Commissioner of Canada to Singapore; Dr. Beh Swan Gin, Director, Biomedical Sciences, Economic Development Board, Singapore; and Brigadier General Philip Su, Assistant CEO, JTC Corporation. Andy Lee, Senior Director, Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases, Pfizer Global Research and Development, served as keynote speaker for the gala dinner. He addressed “The Global Nature of Clinical Trials: Emergence of Asia as a Key Player.” His presentation touched on areas including the evolution of large clinical trials, clinical trials in Asia and the most common therapeutic areas in Asia, including respiratory and infectious diseases and osteoporosis. To obtain a copy of this presentation, please send an email to singaporelaunch@mdsps.com. This expanded facility provides central lab testing, lab and ECG study coordination services, logistics and global clinical development services. It is also representative of MDS Pharma Services' growing presence in the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. Lower cost per patient, vast patient population, availability of motivated and experienced investigators, combined with the broad adoption of International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) guidelines, have made this region an attractive location for clinical trials. Despite wide variability in languages, population sizes, ethnic origins, cultural differences, regulatory requirements and clinical research infrastructure, MDS Pharma Services' effective management of local expertise, experience and global capabilities allow the organization to manage the diverse and varied requirements of clinical trials in this unique and emerging region. MDS Pharma Services offers a full spectrum of resources to meet the drug discovery and development needs of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. With numerous facilities strategically located around the world, the company applies advanced scientific and technological expertise to each stage of the drug discovery and development process – early stage: lead optimization, pre-IND research, pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical development, early clinical research (bioequivalence, phases I-IIa) and bioanalysis; and late stage: global clinical development (phases IIb-IV) and central lab. For more information, visit MDS Pharma Services' Web site at www.mdsps.com. MDS Pharma Services is an integral part of MDS Inc. (TSX: MDS; NYSE: MDZ). MDS Inc. has more than 9,000 highly skilled people in 25 countries providing a diverse range of superior products and services to increase our customers' speed, precision and productivity in the drug development and disease diagnosis processes. We are a global health and life sciences company, recognized for our reliability and collaborative relationships. Please refer to our website at www.mdsintl.com to find out more about how we help create better outcomes in the treatment of disease. For further information, please contact: |