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I am very pleased indeed to once again preside at the award of the BIAL Prize.

I am doing so for the fourth time.

It is one of the most significant Portuguese distinctions in the Health research area which, set up in 1984, is now in its 15th edition.

It is intended to reward works of great scientific quality and relevance and quickly attained international recognition.

I congratulate the jury that awarded this Prize, presided by Professor Doctor António de Sousa Pereira, and through him the Abel Salazar Institute of Biomedical Sciences, where he is a director.

I had the opportunity to preside at the inaugural act of this Institute’s new facilities, where we are today, and reiterate my appreciation for the excellent work that is being developed here.

I naturally congratulate the winner of the Grand BIAL 2012 Prize for Medicine, Professor Peter St. George-Hyslop a world authority in the research on neurodegenerative disorders, who once again witnesses his work recognized through the award of this prestigious Prize.

The research headed by Professor St. George-Hyslop opens the way for early diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders and for the treatment of people at risk, long before the occurrence of permanent brain damage. This is an enormous hope for humanity, since the currently estimated numbers of cases of dementia are known on a worldwide basis, as well as the annual rate of new occurrences.

Is has been estimated that there are today, in Portugal, 153,000 cases of dementia, of which 90,000 suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, doubtlessly one of the most grievous problems that the Country is facing in terms of public health.

The winner of the BIAL 2012 Clinical Medicine Prize Professor José Cunha-Vaz, from Coimbra University, who is referenced in Europe in the area of Ophthalmology, as a Portuguese physician holder of several national and international prizes and distinctions. The research work carried out by the team headed by Professor Cunha-Vaz, is of great relevance for early diagnosis and for a better characterization of the initial stages of Diabetic Retinopathy and opens new and promising perspectives for the prevention and personalized therapy of cases of loss of eyesight due to Diabetes.

The two Honourable Mentions, attributed this year by the BIAL 2012 Prize, distinguish two research works in the area of Genetics and are promising points of departure to find answers that strengthen the fight against Cancer.

Lastly, I want to congratulate those to whom is owed our presence in this ceremony: the BIAL Foundation and, particularly, Doctor Luis Portela.

Doctor Luis Portela is a national figure who stands out due to his visionary spirit. He understood, from early on, that success in a competitive and demanding area such as the pharmaceutical industry could solely be attained through investment and a very firm pursuit in terms of research.
I am certain that his spirit, competence and vision will be followed on by his sons, Doctors António and Miguel Portela. The news, published last April, of the signature of an exclusive licensing contract with a Japanese company, for the marketing of another pharmaceutical product resulting from BIAL research is a further step which we should all be proud of.

Due to the excellence of the research it has developed, BIAL is known worldwide for its products

It is a company with enormous prestige, which became internationalized and which we should congratulate as an example for our entrepreneurs and researchers.

All this is owed to those who work at BIAL and to the leadership of Doctor Luis Portela, to his strategic intuition, to his capability of foreseeing the future.

Companies such as BIAL show that success is within our reach, within the reach of our dreams and of our work. They are a reason for hope and a sign of the talent and the strength of the Portuguese.

In the difficult moments that Portugal is going through, it is important not to lose the sense of the future and to value the role of science, of knowledge and innovation, as decisive components of our development and international assertion.

To Doctor Luis Portela, to all who take part in this spiritual adventure known as BIAL, to all the winners of the 2012 BIAL Prizes, my warmest and heartiest greetings and my testimony of deep appreciation for your work.

Thank you very much.