The 'We Can Face It' Campaign Launched

Dr Dawn Harper, Mica Paris and Jason Gardiner Lead Launch of New Survey Report Showing Impact of Unwanted Facial Hair in Women

LONDON, June 2, 2010 - The We Can Face It campaign for women with unwanted facial hair (UFH) has
been launched today at a celebrity-backed event held at the Sunbeam Studios
in West London. Television personalities Dr Dawn Harper (Channel 4's
Embarrassing Bodies), Mica Paris (soul singer) and Jason Gardiner (style guru
from ITV's This Morning) announced the results from the We Can Face It: 1,000
Women's Survey. The survey is the first of its kind in the UK and has
revealed that 98% of women with UFH regularly have negative or critical
thoughts about their appearance due to facial hair1 and a third experience
anxiety if they can not remove the hair immediately.(1)

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The We Can Face It campaign, sponsored by Almirall Ltd, is an awareness
campaign that aims to communicate the full health impact of excess, unwanted
facial hair; create a supportive community of like-minded women with the
condition and to encourage women to feel confident when speaking with their
doctor about management and treatment options for their condition.

Gloucestershire-based GP Dr Dawn Harper, well known for addressing taboo
health topics on Embarrassing Bodies and one of the expert panel leading the
campaign said, "Unwanted facial hair is a condition that is much more common
in the UK than the general public might believe. It affects around 40% of
women and can have a detrimental effect on women's physical and mental
health, body image and self esteem. I am very pleased to be supporting this
campaign, which will hopefully show women that they are not alone and that a
range of treatment and support options are available to them through their
GP."

The survey findings have highlighted that the impact of UFH on a woman
goes far beyond the superficial or physical appearance of the hair and
regularly impacts on women's social lives and relationships. 89% of women
admitted that they would feel more confident if they didn't have facial
hair(1) and one third said that their unwanted facial hair has regularly
stopped them from going out socially.(1) Dating and relationships are also
severely limited, with around 42% of women saying that facial hair had
prevented them from going on dates (57% in the 18 to 35 age group)(1) and
over 40% saying that their unwanted facial hair has stopped them from forming
relationships (a figure that rose to over half (54%) in the 18 to 35 age
group).(1)

Mica Paris commented, "The We Can Face It campaign is really helping to
bring UFH out of the shadows and onto the public radar. It is shocking that
so many women are not fully enjoying their social life or forming
relationships because they are so concerned about their facial hair. I hope
this campaign will help women to start talking about the condition with close
family or friends so that they don't have to suffer in silence."

Much-needed improvements in support were uncovered by the survey, with
over half of women saying that they felt uncomfortable talking to their
family and over two thirds being uncomfortable discussing facial hair with
friends.(1) More than two thirds use the internet as their primary source of
information,(1) but the majority are not seeking professional help from their
GP, stating reasons such as not wanting to waste the GP's time, feeling
embarrassed or being concerned they won't be taken seriously. (1)

Anxiety is commonplace and women also list other strong negative emotions
such as embarrassment, depression and even stress, as a result of their
facial hair.(1) The negative psychological impact of UFH was found to be much
higher in younger women aged between 18 and 35 years.(1) UFH can also cause
women to significantly limit their prospects and development at work: almost
a quarter of women surveyed said that their unwanted facial hair had stopped
them from going for a promotion at work and more than a quarter said that
they hold back from putting themselves forward for tasks at work because of
their facial hair.(1)

Jason Gardiner, This Morning's style guru co-hosted the launch event as
well as holding a style seminar for the attending women, he said "I'm
delighted to support We Can Face It and hope that through highlighting the
impact of UFH, more women will be inspired to take steps towards lifting
their confidence and self image through style, beauty and health advice. I
really enjoy talking to the women about feeling and looking good and would
love to see the women who have negative feelings as a result of their facial
hair taking my advice into their everyday lives to lift their outlook and
overall confidence."

Additional information on coping with UFH and finding support can be
found on the campaign website at www.wecanfaceit.com along with the
full survey report and results.

Notes to Editors

About the We Can Face It campaign

The We Can Face It campaign, sponsored by Almirall Ltd, is an awareness
campaign that aims to communicate the full health impact of excess, unwanted
facial hair; create a supportive community of like-minded women with the
condition and to encourage women to feel confident to talk to their doctor
about how to manage and treat their condition.

The We Can Face It campaign launch is being supported by a team of
experts. The campaign experts are:

    - Professor Steve Franks, Professor of Reproductive Endocrinology
      Imperial College London and Consultant Endocrinologist at St Mary's and
      Hammersmith Hospitals, London
    - Dr Dawn Harper, General Practitioner, Gloucestershire
    - Dr Alexandra Mizara, Counselling Psychologist and specialist in
      psychodermatology, The Royal Free Hospital, London
    - Charlotte Footman, Electrologist Adviser, St Mary's Hospital, London
    - Rachel Hawkes, Chair, Verity (UK charity for women living with
      Polycystic Ovary Syndrome)

About the 1,000 Women's Survey

The online survey was carried out by Opinion Health among 1,000 women
throughout the UK aged from eighteen to over 65 years who had been identified
as having unwanted facial hair. The research was conducted in February and
March 2010.

About Hirsutism and Unwanted Facial Hair (UFH)

Hirsutism is defined as the presence of excess terminal (coarse) hairs in
females in a pattern typically seen in adult males (androgen-dependent areas)
and is assessed as having a Ferriman-Gallwey score(2) of eight or more.

Unwanted facial hair (UFH) is usually the main concern for women and has
no known cause in many cases but can affect women from all walks of life,
with some Asian and Mediterranean ethnicities being particularly susceptible
to inheriting the condition (hereditary or constitutional hirsutism). Known
causes of UFH include Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), hormonal changes
during the menopause and some drug therapies. UFH can be a profoundly
distressing condition that can have severe negative effects on self-image,
self-esteem and confidence, often leading women to become socially isolated
and withdrawn.

About Almirall

Almirall, an international pharmaceutical company is based on innovation
and committed to health. Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, the company
researches, develops, manufactures and commercialises its own R&D and
licensed drugs with the aim of improving people's health and wellbeing. The
therapeutic areas on which Almirall focuses its research resources are
related to the treatment of asthma, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary
Disease), rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and other
dermatological conditions. Almirall's products are currently present in over
70 countries while it has direct presence in Europe and Latin America through
11 affiliates.

References

1) 1,000 Women Survey, Almirall slide set on file, March 2010

2) Blume-Peytavi U, Hahn S. Medical treatment of hirsutism. Dermatol
Ther. Sept-Oct, 2008; 21 (5): 329-39 Review

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Media Contact: Packer Forbes Communications, Sapna Rughani, Account Director, +44(0)7903-122-393, +44-208-772-1551, sapna at packerforbes.com