August 16, 2004

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited

Higher Dosage Form of Candesarten Cilexetil Approved in Europe

Osaka, Japan, August 16 2004 - Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited ("Takeda") announced today that on August 10, 2004, its wholly-owned subsidiary, Takeda Europe Research & Development Centre Ltd. received an approval for 32mg tablet of candesartan cilexetil (Blopress®, Amias®, Kenzen®) for hypertension use under the European Mutual Recognition Procedures.

The approval covers 14 countries of European Union including The United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Ireland.

This 32mg dose once daily will offer an additional treatment option of hypertension specifically for patients whose blood pressure are not controlled adequately with the dosages of 8mg and 16mg of candesartan.

This higher dose of 32mg was the target dose of CHARM study, in which candesartan improved the mortality of CHF and cardiovascular symptoms associated with CHF. Based on the outcome of this large scale study, the CHF indication is being reviewed by the European regulatory authorities.

CHARM study was sponsored and conducted by AstraZeneca.

Candesartan cilexetil was discovered and originally synthesized by Takeda, and it offers a new type of treatment options by its mechanism of action to lower blood pressure by inhibiting action of a vasopressor hormone Angiotensin II. The product was jointly developed with AstraZeneca. Candesartan cilexetil is marketed worldwide under the brand names Blopress®, Amias®, Kenzen® by Takeda and Atacand® by AstraZeneca in around 70 countries.

About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
Takeda, located in Osaka, Japan, is a research-based global company with its main focus on pharmaceuticals. As the largest pharmaceutical company in Japan and one of the global leaders of the industry, Takeda is committed to striving toward better health for individuals and progress in medicine by developing superior pharmaceutical products. Additional information about Takeda is available through its corporate website, http://www.takeda.com/
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