ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT 2010 2010 - TiGenix

6.4 Market opportunityMusculoskeletal conditions are a major burden on individuals,health systems and social care systems. They are the mostcommon cause of severe long-term pain and physical disability,and they affect hundreds of millions of people all around theworld 15 . The overall prevalence of musculoskeletal conditions inthe Western adult population is estimated to be above 25% 16 ,with OA and soft tissue disorders (which include cartilageand meniscal damage) representing the most commonmusculoskeletal afflictions.For most of these indications, current therapies do not providesatisfying, long-term durable repair. There is a need for moreeffective treatments aimed at the durable restoration of thefunction of damaged and diseased skeletal tissues.Regenerative Medicine holds the promise to be the nextevolution of medical treatments, and the area of skeletal tissuerepair is expected to be prime candidate for commercialsuccess in this field.TiGenix focuses on the development of innovative solutions forsome of the most debilitating conditions in these indications,represented in the diagram below (Figure 6.1). Other, relatedmusculoskeletal tissues such as bone, ligaments and tendonalso represent large unmet medical needs and are potentialareas for broadening TiGenix’ product scope.Fig. 6.1: Focus of TiGenix development activities15 Bulletin of the WHO, September 2003, Woolf et al.16 The Mapping Study, November 2005, Salaffi et al.109 •