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`M E N U
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`ELI LILLY AND COMPANY
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`HERITAGE
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`Skip to: Milestones in Medical Research
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`Eli Lilly and Company has been in business for 140 years. The global, research-based company was founded in May
`1876 by Colonel Eli Lilly in Indianapolis, Ind., in the Midwestern section of the United States. A 38-year-old
`pharmaceutical chemist and a veteran of the U.S. Civil War, Colonel Lilly was frustrated by the poorly prepared, often
`ineffective medicines of his day. Consequently, he made these commitments to himself and to society:
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`◦ He would found a company that manufactured pharmaceutical products of the highest possible quality.
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`◦ His company would develop only medicines that would be dispensed at the suggestion of physicians rather than
`by eloquent sideshow hucksters.
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`◦ Lilly pharmaceuticals would be based on the best science of the day.
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`Although his business flourished, Colonel Lilly wasn't satisfied with the traditional methods of testing the quality of his
`products. In 1886, he hired a young chemist to function as a full-time scientist, using and improving upon the newest
`techniques for quality evaluation. Together, they laid the foundation for the Lilly tradition: a dedication that first
`concentrated on the quality of existing products and later expanded to include the discovery and development of new
`and better pharmaceuticals.
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`Eventually, Colonel Lilly's son, Josiah K. Lilly Sr., and two grandsons, Eli Lilly and Josiah K. Lilly Jr., each served as
`president of the company, and each contributed a distinctive approach to management. Together, these management
`styles established a corporate culture in which Lilly employees were viewed as the company's most valuable assets, a
`belief that is still the cornerstone of our corporate philosophy. For well more than a century, Lilly employees have
`worked to discover and develop important medical breakthroughs.
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`MILESTONES IN MEDICAL RESEARCH
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`1880s
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`1920s
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`Lilly was one of the first companies to initiate a
`bonafide pharmaceutical research program,
`hiring a pharmaceutical chemist as its first
`scientist.
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`Our researchers collaborated with Frederick
`Banting and Charles Best of the University of
`Toronto to isolate and purify insulin for the
`treatment of diabetes, then a fatal disease with no
`effective treatment options. The work resulted in
`Lilly's introduction of Iletin, the world's first
`commercially available insulin product, in 1923.
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`Lilly initiated a research program to find a
`treatment for pernicious anemia, a life-
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`1940s
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`1950s
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`1960s
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`1970s
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`1980s
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`threatening blood disorder, and introduced a
`liver-extract product that served as a standard of
`therapy for decades. The company's collaborators
`on the project, two researchers at Harvard
`University, later shared a Nobel Prize for the
`discovery of liver therapy against anemias.
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`Lilly was among the first companies to develop a
`method to mass-produce penicillin, the world's
`first antibiotic, marking the beginning of a
`sustained effort to fight infectious diseases.
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`The company introduced vancomycin, a powerful
`antibiotic that remains the last line of defense for
`patients suffering from serious hospital infections
`associated with certain types of resistant
`bacteria.
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`Lilly launched erythromycin, an antibiotic whose
`broad antimicrobial spectrum expands the
`alternatives for penicillin-allergic patients.
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`Lilly launched the first of a long line of oral and
`injectable antibiotics in a new class called
`cephalosporins. Over the next two decades, the
`company pioneered important chemical
`breakthroughs that allowed the large-scale
`production of these products, which include
`Keflex® and Kefzol®.
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`The company also introduced vincristine and
`vinblastine, anticancer drugs known as vinca
`alkaloids that are derived from the rosy
`periwinkle plant.
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`Ceclor®, a member of the cephalosporin family,
`was launched and eventually became the world's
`top-selling oral antibiotic. Lilly introduced
`Dobutrex®, an innovative and lifesaving
`cardiovascular product.
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`The most significant breakthrough in diabetes
`care since the 1920s was marked by Lilly's 1982
`introduction of Humulin® insulin identical to that
`produced by the human body. Humulin is the
`world's first human-health-care product created
`using recombinant DNA technology. Lilly later
`applied this technology to the introduction of
`Humatrope®, a new therapy for growth hormone
`deficiency in children.
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`1990s
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`2000s
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`Lilly launched Prozac®, the first major
`introduction in a new class of drugs for treatment
`of clinical depression.
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`Lilly introduced a stream of innovative new
`products: Gemzar®, a drug for the treatment of
`pancreatic and non-small-cell lung cancer;
`ReoPro®, a cardiovascular drug that prevents
`blood clots following certain heart procedures,
`such as angioplasty; Zyprexa®, now the world's
`top-selling antipsychotic for the treatment of
`schizophrenia; Humalog®, a fast-acting insulin
`product that offers greater dosing convenience to
`improve blood-sugar control; and Evista®, the
`first of a new class of drugs to be used for the
`prevention and treatment of postmenopausal
`osteoporosis. In 1999, Takeda Chemical
`Industries, Ltd. and Lilly successfully launched
`Actos®, an oral antidiabetes agent.
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`In late 2000, Lilly submitted Forteo®, a novel
`treatment for osteoporosis, for regulatory review.
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`Lilly launched another first-in-class product,
`Xigris®, for the treatment of severe sepsis in
`adult patients with a high risk of death. In 2001,
`the company also submitted several innovative
`new compounds for regulatory review:
`atomoxetine for the treatment of attention-deficit
`hyperactivity disorder in children, adolescents,
`and adults; Cialis® for the treatment of erectile
`dysfunction; and duloxetine for the treatment of
`major depressive disorder.
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`In 2002, Cialis®, a medication to treat male
`erectile dysfunction, was approved for marketing
`in the European Union; the U.S. launch followed
`in 2004. Forteo®, a first-in-class medicine for
`osteoporosis patients to stimulate new bone
`formation, also was approved. Strattera®, a
`nonstimulant, noncontrolled medication to treat
`attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder received
`approval.
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`In 2004, Symbyax®, the first and only FDA-
`approved medication to treat bipolar depression,
`was launched in the U.S. Alimta® was approved
`for use with cisplatin, a standard chemotherapy
`agent, for the treatment of malignant pleural
`mesothelioma. Cymbalta® was approved as a
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`Page 4 of 4
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`new treatment for major depressive disorder and
`diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain.
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`In 2005, Byetta®, a first in a new class of
`medicines known as incretin mimetics to treat
`type 2 diabetes, was approved and launched in the
`U.S.
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`In 2006, Gemzar® was approved for use in the
`treatment of women living with recurrent ovarian
`cancer. This marked the fourth approval by the
`FDA for this anti-cancer agent.
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`In 2007, the FDA approved osteoporosis drug,
`Evista®, to reduce the risk of invasive breast
`cancer in two populations of postmenopausal
`women: women with osteoporosis and women at
`high risk for invasive breast cancer. The FDA also
`approved Cymbalta® for the maintenance
`treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) in
`adults.
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`In 2008, Cialis® was approved by the FDA for
`once-daily use for the treatment of erectile
`dysfunction.
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`In 2009, Effient was approved by the FDA for the
`reduction of thrombotic cardiovascular events
`(including stent thrombosis) in patients with acute
`coronary syndromes who are managed with an
`artery-opening procedure known as
`percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). PCI
`usually includes the placement of a stent to help
`keep the artery open.