About Me

London-based executive Richard Trevillion brings years of management experience in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries to his current role as the Managing Director and CEO of Amity Partners. As the head of the firm, which he founded in 2001, Richard Trevillion works directly with the executive directors of pharmaceutical and medical technology companies on implementing effective corporate turnarounds with a focus on profitability, short-term and long-term growth, and potential mergers and acquisitions. Through his position, Richard Trevillion has served as Principal on a number of major corporate transactions for companies based throughout the United Kingdom and abroad.

An alumnus of the Manchester School of Management, Richard Trevillions first experience with banking and finance law came through the law firm of Lovell White Durrant. After two years as a Trainee Solicitor, Richard Trevillion transferred his experience to the Simmons & Simmons International Finance and Capital Markets Group where he focused on corporate finance law. Richard Trevillion next joined Coopers & Lybrand Corporate Finance where he received his first exposure to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Before founding Amity Partners, Richard Trevillion also held the position of Co-Director of the Healthcare Corporate Finance team at Arthur Andersen from 1997 to 2000 and Director of the Healthcare and Life Science Corporate Finance Team at Close Brothers Corporate from 2000 to 2002.

Beyond his management of Amity Partners, Richard Trevillion recently served as the Chief Executive Officer of Meldex International PLC in London. In this position from May 2005 to September 2008, Richard Trevillion was the driving force behind the restructuring of the company into a profitable integrated specialty pharmaceutical company. Through his strong management, Richard Trevillion helped Meldex International develop a variety of exciting new products, expand its presence in the world market, and generate revenues of 30M.



Diabetes Interest

Since August 2007 Richard has taken a special interest in Type 1 diabetes; distinct from Type 2. Type 1 is one of the few conditions with early age onset that remains incurable and has a dramatic impact upon the life of the sufferer and their carers.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas and destroys them. Autoimmune disorders are disorders in which the bodys immune system, which normally protects the body against foreign invaders, mistakenly identifies part of the body as foreign and attacks healthy tissue.

In the case of type 1 diabetes the body destroys the insulin-producing beta cells found in the pancreas. This means that the pancreas cant produce insulin a hormone that your body needs to regulate levels of sugar in the blood and within cells.

Type 1 diabetes usually starts during childhood. It used to be sometimes called juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, but because adults can also develop type 1 diabetes and because many people with type 2 diabetes also need insulin, these names have been dropped.

Doctors dont know exactly why the body attacks itself like this, but certain virus infections may play a part as well as inherited (genetic) factors.

What are the consequences of having type 1 diabetes?

Many types of cells in the body need glucose as a fuel, and insulin is needed to move glucose from the bloodstream into the cells. In type 1 diabetes, with no insulin, or very little insulin, being produced by the pancreas, glucose in the bloodstream cannot move into the cells where it is needed. This leads to glucose accumulating in the bloodstream this is called hyperglycaemia. The reverse is called hypoglycaemia which can lead to comas and death.

For the body to function well, blood glucose levels need to be kept within a healthy range, and high blood glucose (hyperglycaemia) can be the cause of many complications in people with diabetes. To combat hyperglycaemia, people with type 1 diabetes need to inject themselves with insulin several times a day to keep their blood glucose levels within a healthy range.

What are the complications of hyperglycaemia?

Having high blood sugar levels can lead to many complications both long term and short term.

Ketoacidosis

In the short term, if blood glucose levels remain high and hyperglycaemia goes untreated, a medical emergency called diabetic ketoacidosis may develop. This is when your body has no insulin to allow glucose to move out of the bloodstream and into the muscles and body cells. With the bodys cells unable to access glucose as an energy source, the body starts to break down fat cells to use as energy. Unfortunately, a by-product of the breakdown of fats is toxic waste products called ketones. The ketones can build up in the blood and lead to a coma and even death.

Heart and blood vessel disease

An increased risk of heart disease (including heart attack), stroke and peripheral vascular disease is a long-term complication of high blood glucose and diabetes. This is caused by deposits in small blood vessels which make the vessels thicken and leak.

Neuropathy

Long-term complications of high blood glucose include neuropathy (nerve damage). The excess glucose in the blood damages the tiny blood vessels supplying nerves. Eventually the nerves fail to transmit signals to the brain properly, or at all. This can lead to tingling, numbness or burning pains in the hands, feet and legs, as well as erectile problems in men.

Nephropathy

Kidney damage (nephropathy) is another long-term complication of high blood glucose levels. Tiny blood vessels in the kidney normally filter waste products and excess fluid from the bloodstream. These are then excreted by the kidney into the urine. However, in type 1 diabetes the kidneys filtering system is damaged and waste products remain in the blood and protein leaks into the urine. Severe damage will lead to kidney failure, requiring dialysis or kidney transplantation.

Retinopathy

Damage to the blood vessels in the eye (retinopathy) is another complication of type 1 diabetes. This can lead to blindness. Cataracts and glaucoma are also more likely in people with type 1 diabetes than in people without.

Infections

An increased risk of infections due to the immune system not functioning well is yet another side-effect of high blood glucose.

Treatment and lifestyle issues

Because of the risk of developing complications from having high blood glucose levels, tight control of blood glucose so that it doesnt rise or fall outside of a healthy range is very important in type 1 diabetes. This is usually achieved by a combination of insulin injections and self-monitoring of blood glucose.

The level of glucose in the bloodstream is influenced all the time by food eaten, level of exercise or activity, other stresses on the body, such as infection or major surgery, as well as by insulin dose. People with diabetes must continually adjust their insulin doses based on factors such as their blood glucose levels, when they are going to eat and how much exercise is planned, so that they can try to achieve good blood glucose control.