Renagel is growing significantly around the world foundation in the United States, Europe, and Japan. With more than 1.2 million people around the globe undergoing need and the prospects are both substantial.

Renagel is emerging as a first-line therapy because of new guidelines for the treatment of dialysis patients and data from ongoing clinical studies. This usage is supported by the 2003 guidelines of the U.S. Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative (K/DOQI), which not only target lower serum phosphate levels in dialysis patients, but also recommend against adding to the calcium burden in many patients. Renagel is the only phosphate binder available that contains neither calcium nor metal, providing phosphorus controls without concerns about the accumulation of these substances.

A mounting body of clinical evidence supports the use of our therapy. In the fourth quarter of 2004, Genzyme released positive preliminary data from our post-marketing study of Renagel in patients who are new to dialysis, confirming results of our earlier treat-to-goal study. The data indicate that patients who use Renagel from the time they begin dialysis exhibit significantly less coronary artery calcification over 18 months than those on a calcium-based phosphate binder, while still achieving the K/DOQI target levels of phosphorus and calcium-phosphorus products. In 2005, we expect to release data from a 2,100-patient study of outcomes for patients receiving Renagel and those receiving calcium-based phosphate binders.