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25 February 2016, Japan Times/GMI Post

Strategia Therapeutics makes major paradigm shift in new drug R&D

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The pharmaceutical industry faces a tough challenge as the current drug development process is highly inefficient and very cost prohibitive. The average cost from R&D until market approval is $4 billion and the success rate for approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stands at only 5 percent.

Keizo's propile photoThe increase in R&D cost has come at an 80-fold decrease in productivity over the last nine years alone.

Strategia Therapeutics, a Boston-based company, has initiated an innovative approach to R&D and is changing the traditional model of drug development.

“Collaboration is the key to success. Remember the days when movies were primarily created by big studios? Actors, musicians, writers and directors worked under one company because people believed they needed to be vertically integrated and have large infrastructures to make good films. Now, movies are made by individuals with varied backgrounds who collaborate with one another,” said President and CEO Dr. Keizo Koya.

“Similarly, Strategia believes in the power of collaboration. Strategia gathers top-notch scientists, drug developers, medical doctors and investors from all over the world to produce and manage the best development team for each new drug, without large infrastructure and expenditure,” Koya added.

With that vision, Strategia has since established seven teams for seven drug candidates in three years by collaborating with experts, organizations, and companies such as Fujifilm,Eisai and MD Anderson Cancer Center.

“We reject the one-size-fits-all mentality. We handpick the experts who are best for each individual drug that we develop,” said Koya.

By translating the highest quality science into proven clinical success in an efficient and nimble manner for patients, Strategia’s innovative approach will bring significant benefits not only to the patients, but also to all the collaborators, investors and society at large.