Healthcare firms to grasp CIIE opportunities

Expo will prove a great platform to publicize innovative tech, equipment and pharmaceuticals

All eyes may be on the China International Import Expo whose fourth edition will open this week. Who can resist such a grand fair that will spotlight flashy exhibits and novel solutions the world has to offer? Certainly not multinational medical companies operating in China. They are among the corporates that are riding China's favorable policies and vast market potential.

"Spillover effects" and "product debuts", executives said, are the main chords running through their participation themes for this year's CIIE.

After all, the nation of 1.4 billion people still faces unmet medical needs and is an avid advocate of, and a generous spender on, bolstering healthcare.

Beijing's grand Healthy China 2030 initiative aims to triple total healthcare expenditure from 2017 to 2030 to $2.5 trillion, and the sheer number and ambition spell heartening news to Ricardo Marek, president of Takeda's growth and emerging markets business unit.

"It presents an opportunity for us as we are set to launch more than 15 innovative medicines and Wave 1 pipelines over the next three to five years," Marek said.

An expert in oncology, rare diseases, gastroenterology, neuroscience and plasma-derived therapies, Japan-based Takeda is placing high hopes on China, which is projected to be the company's second-largest market by fiscal year 2031, thanks to an estimated 20 percent annual growth over the next five years.

"China speed", a term Marek used to refer to China's optimized new drug reviews and accelerated new drug approvals, will be reflected during the CIIE.

For instance, the new drug application of an oral innovative drug for lung cancer was given a priority review designation, leading to simultaneous submissions to National Drug Authority in China and globally. The product will be on display at the fourth CIIE.

"This will enable Takeda's innovative drug to benefit Chinese patients as early as possible," he said.

The CIIE offers a clue to some pioneering medical practices, conducting first-trial experiments and real-world research to help China's medical equipment sector, as is the case of US medical device company Boston Scientific.

For instance, at last year's CIIE, the company debuted a water vapor therapy as a minimally invasive treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Later, the company performed the first such procedure at Hainan Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone－a dedicated area in which preferential policies allow the import of medical devices, technologies and drugs. This product will be officially pre-launched during the fourth CIIE.

Similarly, another product that debuted at the second CIIE for the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, has entered into a local partnership in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province.

"We benefit from the 'multiplying' and 'acceleration' effects of the CIIE, with several of our previous exhibits turning into tangible products at an expedited speed," said June Chang, president of Boston Scientific China.

"The 'spillover effect' lies more in launching products at a fast pace rather than in mobilizing domestic and international resources to create new opportunities and new models."