Tagged with Cancer

Spain Maria Begona Barragan Garcia, president of GEPAC – the Spanish Group of Patients with Cancer – discusses the necessity of the group and its role in Spain’s healthcare system, in addition to how the voice of the patients is now stronger than ever.   GEPAC represents 88 different cancer organizations…

Bristol-Meyers Squibb Last week, Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Bristol-Myers Squibb will acquire Celgene in a cash and stock transaction with an equity value of approximately $74 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, Celgene shareholders will receive 1.0 Bristol-Myers Squibb share…

Korea National OncoVenture (NOV) is Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare funded oncology drug development program to nurture oncology innovation in the country. To maintain high access and limit costs of oncology therapies, we still need to assist in the development of local Korean biotech companies. — Young-Whan Park, President of National…

Korea Young-Whan Park, president of National OncoVenture, discusses their programme to support oncology drug development in South Korea, with a view to discovering and producing a globally competitive, Korean-made oncology medicine. Dr Park also provides his assessment of Korea’s challenge in commercialising its academic research.   NOV not only supports research…

Malaysia Kshitij Panse, director of Servier Malaysia discusses the company’s planned move into oncology, as well as their strategies to provide an all-round improved patient experience, through education, screening, and e-health.   Oncology is the future, and we want to introduce the products in Servier’s pipeline to Malaysia as and when…

South Korea A Korean research team at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) have developed a cunning technology for treatments that attack cancer cells.   Treatments that travel through the body to deliver a cancer destroying substance are hindered by hundreds of proteins that stick to the drug delivery system…

Korea Celltrion Healthcare, the marketing arm of the biopharmaceutical company Celltrion won a huge deal in France last Friday (2nd November 2018) with big tenders for Herzuma, a biosimilar of Roche’s blockbuster breast cancer treatment Herceptin.   Herzuma, with indications for positive metastatic breast cancer, early cancer, and metastatic gastric cancer…

France Thierry Philip, president of Institut Curie, talks about the organization, the effect of cancer on Social Security and the need for a cohesive European plan involving all oncology research institutions and policy-makers.   The most important achievement was the accreditation as a comprehensive cancer centre by the OECI One of…

Malaysia Dr. Saunthari Somasundaram walks us through the NCSM’s mission to raise awareness on cancer prevention and early diagnosis in Malaysia. She details the need for more government support to make cancer education a pillar in healthcare and discredits the idea that care only includes treatment and cure.   Could you…

Algeria Professor Kamel Bouzid, president of the Algerian Society of Medical Oncology, provides an insight into the efforts to fight against cancer in Algeria. Could you please give us an overview of the cancer prevalence in Algeria? In Algeria, 75 percent of cancers are metastasized cancers, and only 25 percent are…

Hong Kong Professor Anne W.M. Lee, vice chairman of the Hong Kong Anti-Cancer Society, discusses the role of patient associations in driving change within healthcare systems. Professor Lee, could you perhaps start by sharing the current strategic priorities of the Hong Kong Anti-Cancer Society (HKACS)? As the biggest non-government organization (NGO) in…

Algeria Prof. Messaoud Zitouni, head of the Algerian National Cancer Plan, highlights the Plan’s main advancements since 2015 as well as the gaps to still address. Three years after the launch of the Cancer Plan, what is the current status on achievements? Initially laid out as a five-year plan, two now…