Pharmaceutical companies are in a giving mood this week. GlaxoSmithKline announced plans to donate one billion doses of a drug that treats intestinal worms to poor countries each year. GSK already gives away 600 million doses of albendazole to treat schistosomias, and the additional tablets will go to fighting soil transmitted helminths, which contribute to malnutrition and developmental delay. [Reuters]

The measure will cost the company about £12 million per annum, and it will provide enough of the medicine to treat every child in Africa. The company plans to increase production to meet this commitment. [Guardian]

The donation will be officially announced at a conference today, where the World Health Organization is releasing its first report on progress against neglected tropical diseases. The organization estimates that 1 billion people are suffering from diseases such as dengue, leishmaniasis and river blindness. [AP]

The occasion has prompted similar announcements from other companies. Novartis will spend $25 million over the next 5 years to treat an estimated 1.1 million people for leprosy. Johnson and Johnson will hand out 200 million treatments of its own intestinal worm medicine each year, and Sanofi-Aventis is re-upping its commitment to help treat a host of neglected diseases, including sleeping sickness and leishmaniasis. [Guardian]

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