Helsinn Partners with the European School of Oncology (ESO)/ Starting July 1st the Swiss Group has become Gold sponsor of the Sharing Progress in Cancer Care (SPCC) Programme

Lugano, Switzerland (ots) - Through its support to the Sharing
Progress in Cancer Care (SPCC) Programme, Helsinn Group starts to
actively collaborate with the European School of Oncology (ESO) in
promoting education in oncology, with special attention to cancer
supportive care.

SPPC is a collaborative programme between ESO and some of the
world's leading pharmaceutical companies.

ESO's activity includes education initiatives such as the "Annual
Masterclass in Clinical Oncology? for selected junior oncologists,
the distance learning weekly "e-grandrounds", held every Thursday at
18:15-19:00 CET, open to interested health professionals from across
the globe and offered free of charge on the ESO e-learning platform,
and the monthly "e-oncoreviews? that are scheduled live the first
Tuesday of the month at the same time (18:15-19:00 CET).

The first e-oncoreview organized in collaboration with Helsinn
will be "Highlights on supportive care", areview of the MASSC-ISOO
International Symposium on Supportive Care in Cancer just held in New
York, chaired by the experts Matti Aapro, IMO Clinique de Genolier,
Switzerland, and Steven Grunberg, Vermont Cancer Centre, Burlington,
VT, USA.

A second e-oncoreview involving Helsinn's support is planned on
December 4th, "Emesis in cancer", managed by the Italian experts
Fausto Roila, Azienda Ospedaliera S. Maria, Terni and Carla
Ripamonti, IRCCS Foundation, National Cancer Institute, Milan. "ESO's
SPCC programme provides some significant benefits for both the
oncology healthcare professionals and the people affected by cancer;
through focused continuing medical education it improves the skills
of the health professionals dealing with cancer patients, and
accelerates the transfer of knowledge from advanced research centers
to daily practice", says the coordinator of the SPCC program, Dr.
Matti Aapro, Director of the Multidisciplinary Oncology Institute at
the Clinique de Genolier, Switzerland.

To celebrate its 30th anniversary ESO is organizing in Lugano
(26-27 October 2012) the World Oncology Forum (WOF), a special event
that will bring together a highly selected group of clinicians,
researchers, advocates, politicians, industry leaders and journalists
with the aim of moving forward the discussion and defining a
consensus answer to the question "Are we winning the war against
cancer?

"We are proud to start this collaboration with ESO; it is aimed at
effectively favoring the education in cancer supportive care, and
represents a step further in the accomplishment of the mission of our
Company. We are also extremely honored to attend the WOF, which will
provide us an additional occasion to focus on oncology and cancer
supportive care in a high level and diverse context", says Riccardo
Braglia, CEO of the Helsinn Group.

About the Helsinn Group

Helsinn is a privately owned pharmaceutical group with
headquarters in Lugano, Switzerland, and operating subsidiaries in
Ireland and the USA. Helsinn's business model is focused on the
licensing of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and nutritional
supplement products in therapeutic niche areas. The Group in-licenses
early-to-late stage new chemical entities, completes their
development through the performance of pre-clinical/clinical studies
and Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control (CMC), development and files
and attains their market approval worldwide. Helsinn's products are
out-licensed to its network of local marketing and commercial
partners, selected for their deep in-market knowledge and know-how,
whom Helsinn assists and supports by providing a full range of
product and scientific management services, including commercial,
regulatory, financial, legal and medical marketing advice. The active
pharmaceutical ingredients and the finished products are manufactured
according to the highest quality, safety and environmental standards,
at Helsinn's cGMP facilities in Switzerland and Ireland, and supplied
worldwide to its customers. For more information about Helsinn Group,
please visit the website: www.helsinn.com

About the European School of Oncology (ESO)

The European School of Oncology (ESO) was founded in 1982 with the
aim of contributing to the reduction of deaths from cancer due to
late diagnosis and/or inadequate treatment.

After 25 years of experience ESO's mission continues to be
reflected in its motto "Learning to Care", which stresses the concept
of studying and learning and also of caring for the patient in a
global sense.

By improving the skills of all health professionals dealing with
cancer patients, ESO shortens the length of time needed to transfer
knowledge from research centres to daily practice, combining advanced
technology with humanism in care.

The European School of Oncology has always given great importance
to the learning process. Since its attention is focused on the
clinical aspects of the cancer problem, care is the ultimate goal of
its commitment to improve the oncological skills of health
professionals. Care and not only treatment is of paramount importance
to us because ESO believes in the holistic approach to the cancer
patient.

Contact:

Helsinn Healthcare SA
Paola Bonvicini
Head of Communication & Press Office
Helsinn Healthcare SA
PH +41/91/985?21?21
Info-hhc@helsinn.com