Astellas APAC: 'Vietnam has great potential to lead the region in healthcare'

Astellas is accelerating the delivery of best-in-class treatments and improving patient access to meet the rapidly growing demand for high-quality healthcare in Vietnam.

Vietnam has great potential to lead in health care

According to Bain & Company, Asia-Pacific (APAC) will be the world's fastest growing region for healthcare spending, accounting for more than 20% of total global spending by 2030. More than 51% of respondents are willing to spend more in exchange for better health and experiences.

Present in 103 markets globally, Astellas is accelerating its expansion strategy in the APAC region, one of the most dynamically developing regions in the world. Mr. Alp Atay - Head of Marketing, International Markets of Astellas - said that the group is currently focusing its investment resources on 8 key countries including Vietnam, India, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia - with a population size of up to 1/4 of the global population.

Mr. Alp Atay - Head of Marketing, International Markets of Astellas

In particular, Mr. Alp Atay emphasized that Vietnam has great potential to lead in healthcare in APAC. Internally, the dynamic and diverse population structure will promote the demand for healthcare and domestic medical spending to continue to increase in the future.

From a regional perspective, Vietnam possesses many competitive advantages with developed medical infrastructure, highly skilled doctors, reasonable treatment costs compared to international standards, and great potential for developing medical tourism . Currently, each year, more than 300,000 foreign visitors come to Vietnam for medical treatment with a revenue of about 2 billion USD according to the Department of Tourism.

"In APAC, Vietnam is a key market that Astellas prioritizes. Besides the business prospects, we are also inspired by the country's remarkable medical advances in cancer treatment, organ transplantation and rare diseases - which are also the three pillars of Astellas' research ," Mr. Alp Atay shared.

In the field of organ transplantation, the quality of kidney, liver and heart transplants in Vietnam has reached the same level as in developed countries. Doctors have even performed lung transplants from living donors, something that is not common even in many developed countries.

Vietnam is also more open in removing mechanisms for rare diseases. Most recently, the Ministry of Health issued Circular No. 01/2025/TT-BYT, allowing 62 rare diseases to not require referral papers but still enjoy 100% health insurance, effective from January 1, 2025.

For cancer treatment, Vietnam has mastered modern techniques in the world such as: robotic surgery, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, dose-modulated radiotherapy, image-guided radiotherapy... with high efficiency.

Despite the growing demand for healthcare in Vietnam, Mr. Alp Atay believes that there is still a large gap that has not been fully met. This may be due to the fact that advanced treatments still face some barriers in access - in terms of time or cost. According to him, for new generation drugs to be put into actual treatment, businesses often have to wait for many years for licensing. Even after being circulated, the high cost of treatment and some drugs are not covered by health insurance make it difficult for drugs to reach patients.

Astellas' development strategy in the Vietnamese market

With a strong commitment to providing high-quality healthcare solutions, Astellas officially established a company in Vietnam in 2022, marking an important milestone after nearly two decades of supplying pharmaceuticals to the market. Following this milestone, Astellas implemented a long-term development strategy, focusing on providing advanced treatments while improving access to medicines for patients.

Mr. Alp Atay has repeatedly affirmed that the strategic foundation of Astellas is to provide the best treatment and improve access.

"We are focused on addressing Vietnam's critical healthcare needs, through expanding our product portfolio and fostering strategic partnerships with multiple partners," said Alp Atay.

Continuing to pursue its vision since its founding - Astellas is steadfast in its goal of transforming pharmaceutical innovations into practical value for patients. The company's portfolio of advanced therapies includes: organ transplantation, oncology and urology, new product lines for intensive cancer treatment, especially new cancers with high treatment rates in Vietnam.

To shorten the time it takes to bring the best treatments to patients, Astellas actively cooperates closely with organizations, hospitals, and health agencies, including the Vietnamese Government. The company's goal is not only to speed up product registration, but also to realize the aspiration of including drugs in the health insurance list, helping patients access modern treatments more easily and promptly.

"Vietnam currently has a dynamic legal environment, regularly updating new policies, in line with social needs and the changing economic landscape. If we can accelerate the approval process for advanced treatments, we believe that in just a few years, Vietnam can become a leading country in providing medical tourism services in APAC ," said Mr. Alp Atay.

Astellas was founded in 2005, following the merger of the 120-year-old Yamanouchi and Fujisawa pharmaceutical companies. To date, the company has reached over 159 million patients in 103 countries with life-changing therapies. In addition to its headquarters in Japan, Astellas has six research centers, numerous manufacturing facilities and branches worldwide.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/astellas-apac-viet-nam-nhieu-tiem-nang-dan-dau-khu-vuc-ve-cham-soc-suc-khoe-18525052818080749.htm