Astellas Pharma is a global pharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative medicines in areas such as oncology, urology, ophthalmology, and immunology.
Claus, you are stepping into an expanded role as Chief Commercial and Medical Affairs Officer of Astellas Pharma. Can you tell us about the significance of this change?
The pharmaceutical industry is complex, with various stakeholders and internal functions engaging with them, including medical, market access, commercial, and sales teams. One of the industry's challenges has been how to create a seamless voice for the customer, so they view the company as a unified entity rather than a series of departments. We want to offer our customers high-level scientific information in an efficient and integrated way, similar to how Amazon provides a one-stop shop. Customers should not have to worry about which department is delivering the service.
Our new structure integrates key customer-facing functions under one roof, including sales, marketing, medical affairs, market access and digital departments. This approach reflects a broader trend in the industry, with nearly 50% of companies adopting a similar model. By aligning these functions, we aim to provide a seamless experience and deliver the scientific information our customers need, ultimately enhancing the impact of our investments in innovation.
Astellas is launching four major products across different therapeutic areas. How important is this moment for the company?
Astellas is at a pivotal moment in its history, with four new products being launched across oncology, ophthalmology, and women’s health. Each therapeutic area presents unique challenges as we navigate different treatment patterns and meet the needs of healthcare professionals, patients, and payers. Managing these launches in parallel requires careful coordination to ensure we provide the right information to customers and deliver value to patients.
This moment is especially significant because Astellas is experiencing its highest growth rate in the company’s 20-year history. Since the merger in 2005, we have expanded from our early focus on immunosuppressants and urology into new areas like oncology, ophthalmology, and women’s health. The company’s successful transformation into a leader across several therapeutic fields is a testament to the exciting future ahead.
Will Astellas’ expansion be driven by M&As or in-house innovation?
Astellas is heavily invested in in-house innovation, allocating approximately 20% of its revenue to R&D for new molecules. We are one of the leading companies in fields like targeted protein degradation, which targets disease mechanisms by breaking down molecules instead of binding them. Though this approach is still in its early stages, it shows great promise. We are also focusing on gene therapy and cell therapy, building strong platforms for these innovative treatments.
While in-house innovation is a key focus, Astellas remains open to acquisitions and licensing, having successfully partnered with external collaborators in the past to bring compounds through development. Our track record includes collaborations in prostate, bladder, and gastric cancers, which have been commercialized successfully. This dual approach—strong internal R&D combined with strategic collaborations—remains central to our expansion.
How does Astellas approach the issue of innovation versus accessibility? Do you believe this dilemma will become outdated with advancements in technology?
I firmly believe the life sciences industry, including pharmaceuticals, is one of the leading innovation engines in the world. While innovation in technology and software often takes the spotlight, the pharmaceutical industry invests heavily in R&D, spending significantly more than the tech industry. Over the last few decades, we have seen remarkable advancements in areas like genomics and antibody therapies, transforming how we treat diseases and improving patient outcomes.
However, innovation does not come for free, and the challenge lies in how to pay for it. With aging populations in many regions, the demand for healthcare innovation is growing rapidly. To address this, we need more efficient systems, including digital healthcare solutions and reducing waste in existing healthcare infrastructures. By optimizing resources, we can make healthcare systems more cost-effective and allocate funds for innovation. Solving this complex issue will require collaboration among the industry, governments, payers, and healthcare professionals to ensure we can continue to meet the growing demand for modern healthcare.
You are working on digitizing Astellas' internal processes. What is the number one thing you would like to achieve in the next few years?
Astellas is focusing on building a digital ecosystem that allows us to understand and cater to the individualized needs of our healthcare customers, whether they are physicians, payers, or other stakeholders. Like consumers, healthcare professionals use various digital channels to search for information, and we need to ensure that we can deliver tailored, high-quality scientific content to meet their needs.
Our goal is to personalize the customer experience by understanding their preferred channels and timing, much like how digital advertising personalizes content for users. This requires building a robust data-driven system to serve healthcare professionals with the information they need, when and how they need it. In the next few years, I hope to see Astellas recognized as an industry leader in providing tailored, high-quality scientific information that helps our customers improve patient care.
