GENEVA, June 25, 2010 /PRNewswire/ --
-- Campaign Website and Global Script Concept Competition Launch Today
Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, today announces the start of the Real MS: Your Story competition, with the campaign website (http://www.realmsvoices.com) now open for entry submissions. Real MS: Your Story is the first element of Real MS, a global multiple sclerosis (MS) awareness campaign that launched on World MS Day 2010. The campaign aims to unite the voice of those affected by the disease, enhance the recognition of the disease, and demonstrate how life with MS can be lived positively.
Real MS: Your Story, will use the power of short film to show the world that life with MS can be redefined in a positive and fulfilling way. The Your Story script concept competition is now open and invites entrants to submit their idea for the subject matter of the 3-5 minute short film. Entries should be submitted online at http://www.realmsvoices.com, where the Real MS online community will be asked to vote for their favourite entry. Once the online community has developed a shortlist, an international judging panel of experts will select the winning script concept which will be made into a short film by a respected film director and screened later in 2010.
"The unpredictability of multiple sclerosis means that people have to reinvent their lives every day to overcome the daily struggles and reminders of their condition," said Dr. Roberto Gradnik, Head of Global Business Unit Neurodegenerative Diseases at Merck Serono. "Real MS: Your Story has been designed to empower the multiple sclerosis community to live the lives they want to lead and we are pleased to announce its official launch today."
Comprising inspirational educational competitions throughout 2010 and into 2011, the Real MS campaign will celebrate the stories, the achievements and the ideas of the global MS community, and help share their vision for the management of the disease. Real MS: Your Story is the first part of this global program of activities.
MS affects approximately two million people around the world and is usually diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 40. Common symptoms of MS include unexplained constant fatigue, loss of sight, loss of sensations, loss of balance, weakness and speech/swallowing and cognitive problems.
To enter the Real MS: Your Story script concept competition, go to http://www.realmsvoices.com. The competition is open from June 25, 2010 and closes at 00.00 GMT, August 13, 2010.
About Real MS campaign
Real MS is an international campaign that aims to raise global awareness of the disease and demonstrate how life with MS can and should be better. Comprising inspirational educational competitions throughout 2010 and into 2011, the first campaign competition (Real MS: Your Story) aims to use the power of a short film to show the world that life with MS can be redefined in a positive and fulfilling way. The Real MS: Your Story competition is not open to US residents.
About multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory condition of the central nervous system and is the most common, non-traumatic, disabling neurological disease in young adults. It is estimated that approximately two million people have MS worldwide. While symptoms can vary, the most common symptoms of MS include blurred vision, numbness or tingling in the limbs and problems with strength and coordination. The relapsing forms of MS are the most common.
About Merck Serono
Merck Serono is the division for innovative prescription pharmaceuticals of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, a global pharmaceutical and chemical company. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, Merck Serono discovers, develops, manufactures and markets innovative small molecules and biopharmaceuticals to help patients with unmet medical needs. In the United States and Canada, EMD Serono operates through separately incorporated affiliates.
Merck Serono has leading brands serving patients with cancer (Erbitux(R), cetuximab), multiple sclerosis (Rebif(R), interferon beta-1a), infertility (Gonal-f(R), follitropin alpha), endocrine and metabolic disorders (Saizen(R) and Serostim(R), somatropin), (Kuvan(R), sapropterin dihydrochloride) as well as cardiometabolic diseases (Glucophage(R), metformin), (Concor(R), bisoprolol), (Euthyrox(R), levothyroxine). Not all products are available in all markets.
With an annual R&D expenditure of more than EUR 1 billion, Merck Serono is committed to growing its business in specialist-focused therapeutic areas including neurodegenerative diseases, oncology, fertility and endocrinology, as well as new areas potentially arising out of research and development in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.
About Merck
Merck is a global pharmaceutical and chemical company with total revenues of EUR 7.7 billion in 2009, a history that began in 1668, and a future shaped by approximately 33,600 employees in 64 countries. Its success is characterized by innovations from entrepreneurial employees. Merck's operating activities come under the umbrella of Merck KGaA, in which the Merck family holds an approximately 70% interest and free shareholders own the remaining approximately 30%. In 1917 the U.S. subsidiary Merck & Co. was expropriated and has been an independent company ever since.
For more information, please visit http://www.merckserono.com or http://www.merck.de
Merck Serono is a division of Merck.
Merck Serono S.A. - Geneva: 9 Chemin des Mines, 1202 Genève, Suisse, Media relations, Tel: +41-22-414-36-00
