Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co. announced Wednesday that it is launching Princeton-based Luzsana Biotechnology, a global, purpose-driven innovative medicines company committed to delivering medicines that are available, accessible and affordable to more people around the world.
Luzsana, which will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Hengrui Pharma, will serve as a global development and commercialization biotechnology organization.
CEO Scott Filosi said Luzsana will fill a great need — and that it has developed a strategic plan with Hengrui Pharma that provides the company access to a world-class pipeline of more than 250 clinical studies in areas of high unmet medical need, such as oncology, cardiovascular, metabolic/diabetes, pain management, immunology and liver and renal disease.
“There are more innovative medicines than ever being developed across the globe, yet many people continue to face barriers in terms of availability, accessibility and affordability,” Filosi said.
Filosi noted the World Health Organization reports that, while there are 25 essential cancer medications, only 10% of countries have made all 25 available to patients.
“We refer to this as the health care paradox,” he said. “We believe the most effective medicines are ones that people can use. That’s why we won’t rest until we get our medicines into the hands of those who need them most — no matter their geography or socioeconomic status.
“We’re confident the Luzsana mission can be brought to life because our unique partnership model has the potential to quantifiably reduce development costs, thereby allowing us to invest in proven solutions that will drive innovative medicine availability, accessibility and affordability.”
Through their unique relationship, Luzsana can partner with Hengrui Pharma to assess and hand-select assets from Hengrui Pharma’s robust pipeline of more than 250 clinical studies across multiple therapeutic areas for global codevelopment and commercialization. Luzsana also will have access to 16 Hengrui Pharma research and development centers with more than 5,400 research staff.
Luzsana has initially selected 11 high-potential oncology and non-oncology programs that span all phases of development, from preclinical to phase 3, for codevelopment. While the company’s initial pipeline is weighted heavily toward oncology, with eight out of 11 programs, Luzsana intends to further diversify its pipeline over time.
Jeff Crowther, president, commercial strategy and global operations at Luzsana, said the move will have great impact.
“Combining Hengrui Pharma’s established discovery and manufacturing capabilities with our robust global clinical trials network provides Luzsana with the potential to bring medicines to market quickly and at a competitive cost following regulatory approval without needing to make significant investments in high-risk, early discovery and infrastructure,” he said.
Luzsana officials said it is a health care company that aspires to become a “healing light” across the biotech sector by prioritizing the well-being of all stakeholders it encounters while operating its business. In addition to Princeton, it has locations in Tokyo and Basel, Switzerland.
