In today’s talking points China health reforms help global pharma groups despite price cuts, robot academy to train surgeons in Australia, China introduces smart technologies to promote elderly care services and BGI, Xing Tech to advance diagnostic technologies.
China health reforms help global pharma groups despite price cuts
Beijing has forced the world’s top pharmaceutical companies to cut prices for their bestselling products, but they are feeling positive in China as expanded state insurance and accelerated approvals boost sales in the world’s second largest drug market.
The two largest overseas pharma companies in China by sales, AstraZeneca and Pfizer, both said China sales rose 24 per cent in the last quarter compared to the same period last year.
China’s pharmaceuticals generated $123bn in sales last year, according to London-based LEK Consulting, which predicts the market will grow at an annual rate above 5 per cent in the years to 2022 as an increasingly wealthy and ageing population becomes more susceptible to chronic diseases such as cancer.
Source: Financial Times
Robot academy to train surgeons in Australia
The Victorian government has announced what will be an Australian-first plan to create a robot academy to train surgeons in how to use advanced technology to perform cutting edge medical procedures on minute and hard-to-reach spaces in the body.
Currently, robotics surgery is used mostly in the treatment of prostate cancer but also has been used in gynaecological, ear, nose and throat procedures, and its precision has lead to higher patient survival rates, lower infection rates, shorter hospital stays and faster recoveries.
The Australian Medical Robotics Academy, which be located in the heart of Victoria’s biomedical precinct in Melbourne’s Parkville, will train surgeons to conduct minimally invasive surgery for prostate cancer and other conditions and will be completed by the end of 2019.
Source: Healthcare IT News
China introduces smart technologies to promote elderly care services
Over the weekend, the International Elderly Health Life Expo was held in Guangzhou over three days. China took centre stage with its introduction of robots which could examine the health of elderly people. One of the robots was equipped with a facial recognition system that could offer medical advice after carrying out a physical examination. China’s medical industry is in the midst of an enormous transformation.
Zhou Xiaohong, from the TCM engineering technology research center in Guangzhou claimed that “this robot is able to identify facial features and even the coating on the tongue to carry out a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) health check. It is also able to conduct ’emotional’ tests. As the TCM highly values emotional stability, the robot will give necessary medical advices when it finds the person to be in a poor mood.”
Source: UNTV News
BGI, Xing Tech to advance diagnostic technologies
Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Xing Technology, an Australian firm. Together, the two partners aim to use both their knowledge and technology in diagnostic technology in the personalised healthcare sector.
Developing technologies in screening, monitoring and characterising for various diseases are the focus of the collaboration of these two partners. The tools they plan on developing can be used, not only for human health, but also in animal health and plant science.
Source: BioSpectrum Asia