Boston, USA / Breda, the Netherlands / Ghent, Belgium
argenx (Euronext & Nasdaq: ARGX), a global immunology company committed to improving the lives of people suffering from severe autoimmune diseases and cancer, today announced the release of a new docuseries, A Mystery to Me, which depicts the experiences of people living with myasthenia gravis (MG), a rare and often unpredictable, chronic autoimmune disease.
“At argenx, we listen to and learn from people with rare diseases so that we can better address the real-life challenges they face,” said Tim Van Hauwermeiren, Chief Executive Officer at argenx. “The strength and resilience of the MG community humbles us every day, and we felt compelled to tell the stories of these remarkable individuals to a broader audience. We’re proud to present A Mystery to Me to unite the MG community in raising awareness of a disease that is often misunderstood and inspire compassion in those who watch it.”
MG causes a person’s immune system to attack the junction where the nerve meets the muscle, often leading to debilitating and potentially life-threatening muscle weakness and fatigue. People with MG often experience difficulty in performing daily tasks like speaking, chewing or swallowing food, moving one’s eyes, and even breathing.2 MG affects an estimated 65,000 people in the United States.1
“The Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America is excited for the launch of this important docuseries, which provides a new sense of connection among our patient community, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Samantha Masterson, CEO of the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America. “Living with MG can feel isolating, especially since every person who has MG experiences the disease differently. We are hopeful that A Mystery to Me will educate the general public not just about the physical implications of MG, but also the emotional toll it can have on a person’s life.”
A Mystery to Me, which was produced by award-winning Sarofsky Productions, illustrates the perseverance of three individuals as they navigate the challenges of living with MG. Glenn Phillips, Teresa Hill Putnam, and Vanetta Drummer Fenton have all adapted their lives and those of their families to accommodate this debilitating illness. In doing so, they strive to hold on to the parts of life that make them who they are – a mother, father, partner, athlete, daughter, son, friend, hometown hero.
“As I listened to Glenn, Teresa, and Vanetta describe their experiences in managing MG, I started to identify the commonalities we can all relate to and wanted to tell their stories. These are extraordinary people exhibiting great strength to address a formidable obstacle in their paths, while also navigating the highs and lows that life can bring us. The stories of these three incredible people are about confronting challenges that may seem impossible to surmount and finding the emotional strength to learn from and apply them to how we live our lives going forward,” said docuseries director Ben Strang.
A Mystery to Me will debut in the U.S. on November 17, 2020 at 6:00PM ET on MG-United.com, an online platform that provides clear and credible resources for people with MG and their support communities, such as symptom tracking, emotional support, and real life stories. The docuseries will be made available to all viewers following the premiere on the MG United website.
About A Mystery to Me
A Mystery to Me is a three-part docuseries that features the moving stories of three people living with myasthenia gravis, a rare, chronic and often unpredictable autoimmune disease. The films explore how three unique individuals have persevered in their own lives despite living with a challenging and sometimes debilitating disease. Sponsored by argenx and produced amid the coronavirus pandemic by Sarofsky Productions, the docuseries was created using an innovative, contactless production technique to complete the films, making this a uniquely “2020” film production. The documentary is available on MG-United.com, an online platform for MG patients and their support communities. For more information, follow MG United on social media at https://www.facebook.com/MGUnitedOfficial/ and https://www.instagram.com/mgunited_official/.
About Myasthenia Gravis
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a rare and chronic autoimmune disease, often causing debilitating and potentially life-threatening muscle weakness.1,2 More than 85% of people with MG progress to generalized MG (gMG) within 18 months, where muscles throughout the body may be affected, resulting in extreme fatigue and difficulties with facial expression, speech, swallowing and mobility. In more life-threatening cases, MG can affect the muscles responsible for breathing.2 There are approximately 65,000 people in the United States and 20,000 people in Japan living with the disease.1,
About Sarofsky
Sarofsky is a Chicago-based, internationally heralded production company chosen by brand and entertainment titans to lead their artful storytelling projects. Sarofsky, in addition to producing their own entertainment content, is well known for their work on Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy, Shameless, and Apple’s iMac Pro artists series.
About argenx
argenx is a global immunology company committed to improving the lives of people suffering from severe autoimmune diseases and cancer. argenx has the goal of translating immunology discoveries into potential new medicines. argenx has offices in Belgium, the United States and Japan. For more information, visit www.argenx.com and follow us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/argenx/.
For further information, please contact:
Beth DelGiacco, Vice President, Investor Relations
+1 518 424 4980
bdelgiacco@argenx.com
Joke Comijn, Director Corporate Communications & Investor Relations (EU)
+32 (0)477 77 29 44
+32 (0)9 310 34 19
jcomijn@argenx.com
Forward-looking Statements
The contents of this announcement include statements that are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms believes, estimates, anticipates, expects, intends, may, will, or should, and include statements argenx makes concerning its business and financial outlook and related plans, the intended benefit of its partnerships, sponsorships or collaborations, the prevalence of MG in the U.S. and Japan and the intended results of its strategy. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. argenx’s actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including argenx’s expectations regarding its the inherent uncertainties associated with competitive developments, preclinical and clinical trial and product development activities and regulatory approval requirements; argenx’s reliance on collaborations with third parties; estimating the commercial potential of argenx’s product candidates; argenx’s ability to obtain and maintain protection of intellectual property for its technologies and drugs; argenx’s limited operating history; and argenx’s ability to obtain additional funding for operations and to complete the development and commercialization of its product candidates. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties and other risks can be found in argenx’s U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings and reports, including in argenx’s most recent annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC as well as subsequent filings and reports filed by argenx with the SEC. Given these uncertainties, the reader is advised not to place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of publication of this document. argenx undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise the information in this press release, including any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.
1. Gilhus N. Myasthenia gravis — autoantibody characteristics and their implications for therapy. Nature Reviews Neurology. 2016. 12:259-269.
2. Myasthenia gravis fact sheet. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/patient-caregiver-education/fact-sheets/Myasthenia-gravis-fact-sheet#2. Accessed October 2020.
3. Hehir M. Generalized myasthenia gravis: classification, clinical presentation, natural history, and epidemiology, Neurol Clin. 2018; 36: 253–260.
4. Carr AS. Generalized myasthenia gravis. BMC Neurol. 2019; 10:46-54.
