Drugs center launch a HUTCHMED milestone

A production center for innovative drugs has been put into use in Zhangjiang Innovative Medicine Industry Base to fuel the city's plan to have more intelligent manufacturing spaces in the biomedical sector.

After three years of construction, the HUTCHMED Innovative Medicine Manufacturing Base was unveiled last Friday, becoming the Zhangjiang base's first high-end biological manufacturing project.

Covering an area of nearly 30,000 square meters, it is expected to have annual capacity of 250 million tablets and 550 million capsules, according to Shanghai-based biopharmaceutical firm HUTCHMED.

Su Weiguo, the company's CEO, said the launch of the center was a milestone in the company's ambitious plan to supply local innovative medicines to the world, and promote integration of innovative medicine R&D, production and commercialization in the city.

HUTCHMED, a leading domestic innovative medicine developer, has so far promoted global clinical trials of 13 self-developed anti-tumor candidates.

Last month, Fruzaql (fruquintinib) gained approval from the US Food and Drug Administration as an oral targeted therapy for adults with metastatic colorectal cancer who have been treated with chemotherapy, anti-VEGF therapy and anti-EGFR therapy.

It is the first novel chemotherapy-free treatment option approved for patients in the US regardless of biomarker status in more than a decade.

Currently, the company is working on getting global approval of savolitinib as a novel therapy to treat lung and gastric cancers.

In September, Shanghai released an action plan to accelerate the construction of intelligent manufacturing spaces for the biomedical sector to support the city to become a global biological hub.

It aims to witness construction of 5 million square meters of standard factories by the end of 2024. As a biomedical industry hub of Shanghai, Zhangjiang will be responsible for adding 800,000 square meters of spaces.

Li Jia, an official with the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Informatization, said more support will be granted to innovative pharmaceuticals to strengthen their competitiveness and at the same time boost the city's goal to expand the scale of its biomedical industry.