During the 7th China International Import Expo (CIIE), Gong Wenhao, Senior Director of Coronary Intervention and Structural Heart Valve Business Unit and Technology Exploration at Boston Scientific China, was interviewed by a reporter from the Daily Economic News (NBD).
Boston Scientific is one of the global giants in the field of cardiovascular intervention and one of the earliest multinational pharmaceutical and device companies to enter the domestic market. In 1997, it established its China headquarters in Shanghai, and its core business scope covers cardiac intervention, cardiac rhythm management, atrial fibrillation solutions, urology, and neural regulation.
In the global cardiovascular intervention market, coronary stents, as one of the core products, have not only attracted the attention and layout of domestic and foreign giants in recent years, but also faced continuous technological innovation and market competition. Especially for the centralized procurement of coronary stents launched in China in 2020, the first year's procurement volume reached 1.07 million units, covering more than 70% of the intended procurement volume of medical institutions, with an average price reduction of 93%. This measure can be said to completely overturn the business model of China's coronary stent industry.
In the foreseeable future, the centralized procurement of coronary stents will continue to advance. For traditional stents, it will further compress the revenue and profits of major enterprises, thus forcing major pharmaceutical device manufacturers to accelerate innovation and develop differentiated products. In the interview, Gong Wenhao also provided in-depth analysis to reporters on how Boston Scientific achieves the sinking of high-quality medical resources through technological exploration and localization layout.
From import to domestic production and then to export
NBD: Could you briefly introduce the important products exhibited by Boston Scientific in the field of coronary intervention this year? Where are their market competitiveness and innovation points?
Gong Wenhao: Coronary heart disease is one of the high-risk cardiovascular diseases. According to the "China Cardiovascular Health and Disease Report 2022", the number of cardiovascular disease patients in China has reached 330 million, including 11.39 million patients with coronary heart disease. Two out of every five deaths in China are caused by cardiovascular disease. With the acceleration of the aging process of the population, the incidence rate and mortality of coronary heart disease in China are still on the rise, which poses a severe challenge to China's cardiovascular disease prevention strategy and medical resource allocation.
At this year's CIIE, we introduced the "China First Launch" product - the new generation intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) system AVVIGO+MAH, which is a product used for precision treatment of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Performing PCI surgery under IVUS guidance is a mature technology, however, there is a significant gap in its popularity in China compared to developed countries. Considering that traditional coronary angiography can only determine vascular occlusion in patients with coronary heart disease through angiography images, the use of IVUS technology provides more comprehensive, clear, and realistic imaging, which can better reduce the probability of patients experiencing myocardial infarction or revascularization again.
NBD: What important progress has Boston Scientific made in domestic production and research in recent years? At the same time, what specific plans and measures does the company have to help "Made in China" go global?
Gong Wenhao: Taking products in the field of coronary intervention as an example, in 2019, our Polaris intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) system attracted attention from the government and industry after its debut at the China International Import Expo. It was under the guidance of the Shanghai drug regulatory department and with the help of the medical device registrant (MAH) system that this product achieved local production and simultaneous supply overseas in 2022, completing the identity upgrade from "import to domestic production and then to export".
In October of this year, Boston Scientific China's first production and manufacturing base officially opened in Shanghai Lingang. After the Shanghai Lingang factory is put into operation, it will be the first to bring consumables for intravascular ultrasound systems, which will effectively shorten the supply cycle of medical products. From the perspective of transportation and delivery time, in the past, when products were imported from overseas, after going through production, sea transportation, and the production of localized instructions, the shelf life of the products was only about half. However, after the completion of the Lingang factory, the delivery process will be significantly optimized, so that our products can be supplied to the Chinese market more quickly and stably.
We have a long-term outlook on the potential of China's innovation to integrate into the global market. Last year, we completed a majority equity investment in Chinese listed company Xianruida. At present, Boston Scientific and Xianruida are closely cooperating in the field of cardiac intervention, hoping to deepen cooperation in exploring commercial expansion layout and international joint research and development, and help domestic original research successfully go global.
Promote the sinking of high-quality medical resources
NBD: Data shows that the current population of coronary heart disease patients in China is huge, but the penetration rate of coronary intervention therapy in China is still at a low level. What measures can Boston Scientific take to increase the penetration rate of coronary intervention therapy in China?
Gong Wenhao: Promoting the sinking of high-quality medical resources is an important step in promoting the expansion of high-quality medical resources and regional balanced layout, as well as an important support for building a healthy China. This involves various aspects such as the medical system, diagnosis and treatment capabilities, and product supply, and is also the direction of joint efforts of the entire medical ecosystem. As a company, Boston Scientific is also striving to leverage its own advantages to help the entire industry chain overcome the pain points and difficulties of sinking high-quality resources for coronary intervention therapy from various aspects such as product supply and diagnosis and treatment capabilities. Firstly, in optimizing product supply, it utilizes the Medical Device Registered Person (MAH) system to achieve "import to domestic production" and improve the accessibility of medical products in the local market; Secondly, in terms of improving diagnostic and treatment capabilities, Boston Scientific uses digital means to promote and popularize cutting-edge surgical techniques at the grassroots level.
NBD: What challenges and opportunities does the national centralized procurement policy bring to Boston Scientific's coronary intervention business?
Gong Wenhao: In order to enhance the accessibility and affordability of innovative products, Boston Scientific has actively embraced the national centralized procurement policy and participated in it since the first batch of centralized procurement. So far, commonly used cardiovascular instruments such as coronary stents and catheters used in intravascular ultrasound systems have entered centralized procurement, benefiting more local patients. By improving the accessibility and affordability of these products, more patients in lower tier areas can access innovative products with greater clinical value, which is Boston Scientific's rightful contribution to accelerating the sinking of high-quality medical resources.
NBD: What other measures does Boston Scientific take to support the significant development of heart health in China?
Gong Wenhao: The introduction of policies such as graded diagnosis and treatment, no major illness leaving the county, and the "Thousand County Project" shows China's high attention and investment in primary healthcare. Boston Scientific takes a multidimensional approach to support the downward supply of high-quality medical services, improve the construction of the medical system, and enable patients in a broader market to benefit from cutting-edge innovative technologies. In April 2022, we responded to the call of the National Health Commission's "Thousand County Project" and joined hands with the National Health Commission's Health Development Research Center to launch the "Thousand County Project Precision PCI Grassroots Tour" project. By promoting resource sharing and integration, we helped county hospitals build minimally invasive intervention centers for coronary heart disease, further sinking high-quality medical resources to the grassroots level, and assisting in the achievement of graded diagnosis and treatment goals.
While promoting the standardization of medical technology and the popularization of standardized standards, Boston Scientific also deeply realizes that medical enterprises are a "community" that works together with hospitals to share the burden and solve the difficulties of patient health. It is even more necessary to actively explore new ideas for the co construction of the "industry, academia, research, and medicine" ecosystem. Therefore, we actively listen to frontline clinical feedback, explore new models of medical engineering integration and medical enterprise co construction, accelerate innovation and transformation from clinical sources, and use positive interactions to help improve the medical system and promote high-quality industrial development.