5 May 2017 - - US-based biotechnology company Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX) has named grant recipients for its 2017 Cystic Fibrosis Circle of Care programme, the company said.

This is an initiative that funds innovative, patient-centric programmes for the CF community.

For this year, Vertex awarded a total of USD 1m to 15 non-profit medical, academic, patient and community organizations.

Since starting the programme in 2015, Vertex has awarded 50 grants totaling USD 3m to organisations around the world.

Selected by a committee of CF community members and Vertex employees, this year's recipients include organisations from Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. A complete list of recipients and project descriptions is available here.

Each year, Vertex invites Circle of Care grant recipients from around the world to a colloquium to discuss their projects and share advice and inspiration. The next colloquium will take place in November 2017 during the 31st North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference (NACFC) in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Cystic fibrosis is a rare, life-shortening genetic disease affecting approximately 75,000 people in North America, Europe and Australia.

CF is caused by a defective or missing CFTR protein resulting from mutations in the CFTR gene.

Vertex is a global biotechnology company that aims to discover, develop and commercialise innovative medicines so people with serious diseases can lead better lives. In addition to our clinical development programs focused on cystic fibrosis, Vertex has more than a dozen ongoing research programs aimed at other serious and life-threatening diseases.

Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Mass., Vertex has research and development sites and commercial offices in the United States, Europe, Canada and Australia.