Message from the CEO areas of urology and transplantation, where we are already  established, while also working to establish oncology as a  third field as quickly as possible.  In the urology therapeutic area, we are further reinforc- ing our leading position by steadily expanding sales of our  OAB treatments Vesicare and mirabegron (generic name).  In the therapeutic area of oncology, which we are working  to develop as a third GCL field, we are making steady  progress in building our presence through the launch of  XTANDI in the U.S., Europe and Japan. In the therapeutic  area of transplantation, we are maintaining global leader- ship in the category despite the loss of patent protection  for Prograf, whose sales we are working to preserve. Under the R&D innovation strategy, we are pursuing a  “Precision Medicine” approach aimed at enhancing thera- peutic effectiveness by more precisely identifying the target  groups of patients. We are also promoting a “Multi-Track  R&D” approach based on effective utilization of external  resources. Moreover, to strengthen our drug discovery  capabilities, we decided to reshape our research frame- work and introduce a new system. In these ways, we are  now seeing steady progress in innovation. Astellas has its own global sales network covering more  than 50 countries around the world. We are seeing steady  growth in new global products such as mirabegron and  XTANDI, in addition to global products such as Vesicare.  We also draw strength from the fact that our growth is  underpinned by distinctive products in each region.  Efforts are also being made to strengthen our sales  platform in emerging markets that are expected to grow in  the years to come. We have achieved high growth primarily  in China and Russia. We are pressing ahead with well- balanced business expansion initiatives in the global  market spanning the four regions of Japan, the Americas,  Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia & Oceania. Faced with the continuing globalization of business, we  believe that it is imperative to identify the common thread  running through issues faced by each regional community  and Astellas’ business activities, specifically when con- ducting business in emerging countries, and incorporate  those considerations into our medium- to long-term corpo- rate strategies. We are confident that moving forward with  these perspectives in mind will support value creation at  Astellas over the long term.  Social, environmental and employee-related CSR activities  are part of the 2014 Mid-Term Management Plan. We are  achieving solid results across a range of activities. Among  them are promoting CSR-based procurement initiatives,  measures to achieve greenhouse gas emissions reduction  targets, promoting human resources development and  diversity and implementing measures focused on research  into drugs for the treatment of neglected tropical diseases  (NTDs). In particular, combatting NTDs is an issue addressed  in global health, where Astellas can leverage its expertise  and strengths. We have established collaborative research  programs with various external research and educational  institutions to help tackle these social issues. At the same  time, we think our efforts in this area will develop synergies  with our business activities in the long run. Our sales progressed fairly well against our plan target.  However, we do not expect to achieve the target for  operating income in fiscal 2014. This is attributable to  three main factors. First, the growth of generic drugs has  been greater than we predicted. Second, R&D expenses  have increased above the initially anticipated level, mainly  due to the increase in the expenses for late-stage clinical  trials. Third, our sales expenses have increased due to  Annual Report 2014 _  Astellas Pharma Inc.  13 cSR Activities Regional Strategy  R&D innovation Strategy progress on Mid-Term Management plan Targets Regional Strategy Efficiency Strategy R&D Innovation Strategy Therapeutic Area Strategy Review of the 2014 Mid-Term Management plan (Main initiatives) - Strengthen OAB franchise - Establish business in the oncology field - Develop future fields - Reshape the research framework and introduce a  new system  - Take steps for R&D in new therapeutic areas and  novel platform technologies - Promote project prioritization and Multi-Track R&D - Continuously launch new products in each region - Form strategic alliance with Amgen, Inc. in Japan - Strengthen sales platform in emerging countries  - Strengthen global management system - Optimize production framework - Outsource group-wide shared operations - Consolidate domestic business sites, dispose  of assets, etc. 