Merck will “focus on specialty care capabilities"

Javed Alam, General Manager of Merck Biopharma Korea

“Will expand communication with customers through digital channels… continue investing in the company’s pipeline.”

“Will strengthen collaboration with Korean bioventures, providing support for basic clinical trials, etc.”

Javed Alam, General Manager of Merck Biopharma Korea

The global chemical and pharmaceutical company Merck is working intently to strengthen its capabilities in the pharmaceutical sector.

 

The company, whose main areas of expertise are liquid crystal and LED, has also been continuing its commitment to introduce new drugs, starting with the anticancer drug ‘Erbitux (cetuximanb),’ the immune-oncology PD-L1 inhibitor ‘Bavencio (avelumab)’ that was co-developed with Pfizer, to the recently approved multiple sclerosis treatment 'Mavenclad (cladribine).’ Dailypharm met with Javed Alam, the General Manager of Merck Biopharma Korea, who has celebrated his 2nd year at the company, to hear about Merck’s vision in the healthcare business.

 

-You have spent most of your time here since your appointment in the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Could you tell us about your impressions and thoughts about your work here in Korea, and the achievements that were made?. I would have to say my time here was crisis after crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

However, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to protect our employee’s health and safety while continuing communication with our customers and ensuring a smooth supply of products for our patients, based on which we achieved business growth during the past 2 years.

 

In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, our company had focused on Specialty Care and efficiently reorganized the organization, and carried out our roles smoothly so that there were no disruptions in the supply of our products.

 

In addition, we made various efforts such as actively embracing the use of digital channels to communicate with our customers to frequently update them on the company’s situation.

 

Also, I take special pride in the fact that no Merck Biopharma Korea employee has had COVID-19.

 

-- New changes have occurred in the Pharma business area, such as the launch of new products.

 

Does this mean the company is seeking a change of tone? Merck’s goal in global healthcare is to become a Global Specialty Innovator, under which Merck Biopharma Korea aims to become the most innovative specialty care company in Korea.

 

To achieve this goal, the company had to undergo various changes in its business model, company structure, organization, etc.

 

While making such changes, we also changed our corporate culture to focus on restructuring the business model to focus on specialty care and digitalization.

 

Through these efforts, we expanded our digital channel from 1 to 8, including webinars, websites, and web meetings.

 

Also, the company made various changes structure-wise, and these various efforts have fortunately paid off to benefit the company.

 

-I can see the company’s strong commitment to specialty care.

 

The Specialty Care unit covers rare and incurable diseases that are difficult to diagnose or cure.

 

The number of patients and specialists for such diseases is relatively small, and that is why it is also an area that has the highest unmet need from patients.

 

Among various areas of specialty care, Merck is focusing on 4 areas - Immuno-oncology∙Oncology, Neurology∙Immunology, Infertility, and Endocrinology.

 

Erbitux has been showing good performance in our existing Immuno-oncology unit.

 

In the recent KSMO Annual Meeting, & Conference we have presented the results of OPTIM1SE that demonstrated the drug’s clinical safety and efficacy in Korean patients.

 

In addition, we have also released the immuno-oncology drug ‘Bavencio (avelumab)’ that was co-developed with Pfizer in our efforts to become a specialty care leader.

 

Bavencio is a treatment for Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) which is a rare and aggressive type of cancer that has a 5-year survival rate of 0-20%.

 

I believe we were able to provide new hope to these patients with Bavencio.

 

In Neurology∙Immunology, we have the multiple sclerosis treatment Mavenclad (cladribine).

 

Multiple sclerosis occurs most commonly in women in their prime - 20s to 30s - causing difficulty in their life and treatment.

 

However, Mavenclad’s innovative dosing and administration allows patients to only take Mavenclad for up to 20 days over 2 years, and then be free from additional dosing requirements for the other 2 years.

 

-What kind of efforts have Merck Biopharma Korea made to advance Korea’s healthcare industry?

 

We have been actively participating in clinical programs and global trials to increase Korea’s level of contribution and influence.

 

Korea is involved in all of the 20 global clinical programs at Merck including its key 7 programs.

 

By actively participating in R&D and the clinical stage, we are increasing our contribution to Merck’s portfolio and ultimately increasing Korea’s influence in the global market.

 

Also, we have been making efforts to increase Korea’s contribution in earlier stage innovation.

 

For example, we help promising startup venture companies in Korea to connect with Merck’s innovation program.

 

The ‘Merck Accelerator program’ has supported a total of 12 companies worldwide until now, and ‘Inhand Plus,’ a Korean startup, was the first in Korea to be selected to receive benefits from the program.

 

-Could you briefly introduce the company’s pipeline products that you plan to introduce in Korea in the future? Merck Biopharma Korea is striving to showcase innovation in all areas of its involvement, therefore, you can continue to expect innovative changes and products from us in the future.

 

In the past, the company had depended heavily on primary care products.

 

However, now, as the Global Specialty Innovator, we hope to become an unrivaled company in specialty areas.

 

Our first goal is to maximize our Korean patients’ accessibility to the company’s excellent pipeline products.

 

Merck Global Is focusing on enriching its entire pipeline, and we will continue our efforts to promptly and broadly introduce all the innovative solutions, products, and technology that is and will be developed by Merck to our patients in Korea.