Allergan Teams Up With Super Bowl MVP Von Miller to Raise Awareness of Glaucoma’s Impact on Daily Living

January 16, 2020 |

7 min read

Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN), a leading global pharmaceutical company with more than 70 years of heritage in eye care, announced today a partnership with Von Miller, Super Bowl MVP, Denver Broncos linebacker and advocate for healthy vision, to shine a light on the millions of people living with glaucoma

DUBLIN, Jan. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Allergan, Inc. (NYSE: AGN), a leading global pharmaceutical company with more than 70 years of heritage in eye care, announced today a partnership with Von Miller, Super Bowl MVP, Denver Broncos linebacker and advocate for healthy vision, to shine a light on the millions of people living with glaucoma. As an ambassador for the 'My Glaucoma' campaign, Miller will address the misunderstandings and impact of glaucoma and encourage those with the disease, and their caregivers, to take early action. This includes going regularly to the doctor and taking medications as prescribed. Additional information can be found at www.MyGlaucoma.com.

Experience the interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8472154-allergan-my-glaucoma-von-miller/

"Growing up, I had challenges with my vision. I don't have glaucoma, but I know firsthand how it feels to deal with vision issues. Because of this, I'm dedicated to helping others who suffer from visual impairments and their caregivers," said Von Miller. "Working with Allergan, I learned that 27 percent of patients with glaucoma are estimated to go blind in one eye over a 10-year period, and I want to bring attention to the misunderstandings and impact of glaucoma so people and their loved ones can have more informed conversations with their doctors."

As a child, Miller suffered from vision problems. This made school a challenge for him and he struggled to maintain a positive self-image because of it. Miller finally took control of his vision after a visit to his eye doctor and gained back his confidence that led him to go on to play professional football. Because of this, and knowing firsthand the feeling of losing your sight to any degree, Miller is passionate about helping others take control of their visual impairments and is excited about the opportunity to spotlight the misunderstandings and impact of living with glaucoma by joining Allergan's 'My Glaucoma' campaign.

"Following results from a survey of patients with glaucoma, which showed that there are many misperceptions about the disease, we launched the 'My Glaucoma' program in 2019 to amplify and highlight the seriousness of the disease, and encourage people on the frontlines and their caregivers to have meaningful conversations with their doctors," said Ramin Valian, Vice President, Allergan Interventional Glaucoma. "We're excited to join forces with Von Miller, someone who is passionate about early action against vision problems, to call attention to glaucoma and motivate patients and their caregivers to take better control over their disease."

'My Glaucoma' includes an educational video featuring Miller, in which he discusses how vision loss has impacted him and why people need to take early action against their glaucoma. Additionally, Miller and Allergan created a quiz to test Americans' glaucoma knowledge. The video, quiz and other resources for patients living with glaucoma and their caregivers are now live on www.MyGlaucoma.com.

About the 'My Glaucoma' Campaign
The 'My Glaucoma' campaign is designed to help people understand the burden of living with glaucoma and empower those with the disease and their caregivers to feel comfortable speaking with their doctor about a treatment regimen that fits their lifestyle. The resources available on www.MyGlaucoma.com are supported by a new survey of patients living with glaucoma and eye doctors, conducted in collaboration with Glaucoma Research Foundation (GRF), that found more than 75 percent of patients worry about vision loss because of the disease, but nearly half consider glaucoma to be only somewhat or not serious. In fact, research published by the American Journal of Ophthalmology suggests that 27 percent of patients with glaucoma are estimated to go blind in one eye over a 10-year period.

As a leader in eye care, Allergan sought to listen to the voices of patients with glaucoma and eye care professionals to put together meaningful resources that everyone living with glaucoma can benefit from. The interactive website www.MyGlaucoma.com offers access to videos that include perspectives from patients living with glaucoma and their caregivers, more information from the survey and patient resources, such as a conversation guide and facts about glaucoma diagnosis and treatment.

About Glaucoma
Glaucoma is one of the primary causes of irreversible vision loss and blindness. An estimated 70 million people globally are living with glaucoma. This progressive disease is characterized by elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Uncontrolled, elevated IOP causes damage to the optic nerve and loss of vision. Reduction of elevated IOP is the only proven way to slow the progression of vision loss associated with glaucoma.

Current treatments to lower IOP include topical medications (eye drops), laser trabeculoplasty, minimally invasive glaucoma surgery and incisional surgery. Eye drop medications are the standard first-line treatment for open-angle glaucoma, the most common form, but low patient adherence to these medications is common – up to 80 percent of patients are not using topical medications as prescribed. Poor adherence to glaucoma medication could result in disease progression and vision loss. According to a study published by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, up to 59 percent of patients on treatment for glaucoma continue to progress, meaning they experience vision loss and damage to the optic nerve.

About Allergan Eye Care
As a leader in eye care, Allergan has discovered, developed, and delivered some of the most innovative products in the industry for more than 70 years. Allergan has launched over 125 eye care products and invested billions of dollars in new treatments for the most prevalent eye conditions including glaucoma, ocular surface disease, and retinal diseases such as diabetic macular edema and retinal vein occlusion. Our eye care pipeline includes 13 additional agents for multiple ocular conditions.

Our commitment to the well-being of patients is also reflected in social responsibility. Allergan, The Allergan Foundation and The Allergan International Foundation support more than 150 organizations around the world working to improve lives and communities. We remain steadfast in helping eye care providers deliver the best in patient care through innovative products and outreach programs.

About Allergan plc
Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN), headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a global pharmaceutical leader focused on developing, manufacturing and commercializing branded pharmaceutical, device, biologic, surgical and regenerative medicine products for patients around the world. Allergan markets a portfolio of leading brands and best-in-class products primarily focused on four key therapeutic areas including medical aesthetics, eye care, central nervous system and gastroenterology. As part of its approach to delivering innovation for better patient care, Allergan has built one of the broadest pharmaceutical and device research and development pipelines in the industry.

With colleagues and commercial operations located in approximately 100 countries, Allergan is committed to working with physicians, healthcare providers and patients to deliver innovative and meaningful treatments that help people around the world live longer, healthier lives every day.

For more information, visit Allergan's website at www.Allergan.com.

Forward-Looking Statement
Statements contained in this press release that refer to future events or other non-historical facts are forward-looking statements that reflect Allergan's current perspective on existing trends and information as of the date of this release. Actual results may differ materially from Allergan's current expectations depending upon a number of factors affecting Allergan's business. These factors include, among others, the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of FDA approvals or actions, if any; the impact of competitive products and pricing; market acceptance of and continued demand for Allergan's products; the impact of uncertainty around timing of generic entry related to key products, including RESTASIS®, on our financial results; risks associated with divestitures, acquisitions, mergers and joint ventures; risks related to impairments; uncertainty associated with financial projections, projected cost reductions, projected debt reduction, projected synergies, restructurings, increased costs, and adverse tax consequences; difficulties or delays in manufacturing; and other risks and uncertainties detailed in Allergan's periodic public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to Allergan's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 and Allergan's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2019. Except as expressly required by law, Allergan disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

CONTACTS: Allergan:
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Manisha Narasimhan, PhD
(862) 261-7162

Media:
Lisa Brown
(862) 261-7320

Lisa Kim
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