Japan Writing in DIA’s Global Forum magazine for June 2024, Mamoru Narukawa of Kitasato University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences takes a look at some of the positive trends impacting Japan’s drug pricing system.   Drug expenditure as a percentage of healthcare costs in Japan has been stable at approximately 22% in…

India India faces a significant diabetes burden, with some observers even labelling the country ‘The Diabetes Capital of the World’. Around 101.4 million adults, or 11 percent of the Indian population, have diabetes.   As Dr Brij Mohan, president of India’s Diabetes & Obesity Centre surmises, Indians tend to develop diabetes…

China BeiGene may not be a profitable business quite yet, but the Chinese biotech has two top oncology products and saw its sales soar to USD 2.2 billion in 2023. Having set its sights on markets outside of China, with its BTK inhibitor Brukinsa already approved across multiple geographies, the company…

Japan Some of the biggest stories coming out of Japanese pharma, including Takeda’s USD 2.2 billion Alzheimer’s deal with AC Immune and its plans to restructure; the continuing probe into deaths linked to a Kobayashi Pharmaceutical supplement; Kyowa Kirin’s acquisition of Orchard Therapeutics, and Shionogi’s buy up of Maze Therapeutics’ Pompe…

India Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) concerns have grown in global importance in the last few years due to several factors, including increased awareness of and demand for sustainable investing, the need for companies to maintain what McKinsey calls their ‘social license’, and the potential financial benefits of strong ESG performance.…

China Global pharma has been stepping up M&A activity in Asia while also looking to access Asian markets through local partners and tap into the region’s huge growth potential. As a result, the role of Business Development (BD) at international pharma companies has evolved. In a recent PharmaBoardroom interview, Servier’s Asia…

Korea A roundup of some of the biggest stories from South Korean healthcare and pharma, including the government’s continuing standoff with doctors over medical reform plans; Merck’s plans for a new 300-million-euro plant; EuBiologics’s World Health Organization (WHO) prequalification for its cholera vaccine, and Samsung Biologics’ record Q1 earnings.   South…

China Chinese player Legend Biotech reached a new turning point last month when its Johnson & Johnson-partnered Carvykti became the first BCMA-targeted CAR-T cell therapy to be approved by the FDA for second-line treatment of multiple myeloma. From its original roots in China to its first FDA approval in 2022, the…

India Siloed healthcare is no match for a malignant, insidious, and pervasive disease like cancer. Over recent decades, countries and regions across the world have discovered that – in the absence of a cure – a networked and holistic approach to cancer care is vital. In this vein and drawing from…

China Since it was established in 1988,  PhIRDA, an organization that groups together China’s pharma innovators, research institutions and investors has played an active role in the evolution of China’s biopharma landscape. Executive President Prof. Song Ruilin outlines the advances and some of the challenges and opportunities facing China’s biotech and…

Japan Writing in DIA’s Global Forum magazine for April 2024 on behalf of DIA Japan’s Open Innovation Community Fumitaka Noji, Takeshi Kono, and Makoto Nagaoka look at how the gap between Japan’s academia and pharma companies can best be bridged to fully reap the benefits of innovation.   Although open innovation in drug…

China In 2023, the first full year after the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) set a new record by approving the highest number of new drugs in China in a single year, write Chunrong Yu of Gracell Biotechnologies and Xu Wang of Novo Nordisk (China) Pharmaceuticals in the…