Albert Liou, Parexel Malaysia
Release Date: 2011-01-13
With the biopharmaceutical industry increasingly looking towards Asia whilst at the same time aiming to reduce operating costs, what is the significance of APAC for the success of PAREXEL?Albert Liou (AL): The Asia Pacific region is the fastest growth region for PAREXEL overall. PAREXEL first entered Asia-Pacific in 1995 and was one of the first CROs to enter this market beginning with Japan. The company helped Western pharmaceutical companies to enter the Japanese market as well as Japanese pharmaceutical companies to enter Western markets.
Aside from the growth there is also a large pharmaceutical market. If we combine the top four markets including China, Japan, India and South Korea then the total pharmaceutical market reaches around $130 billion. This figure is larger than the top five European countries including the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy.
In 2007 PAREXEL acquired APEX International Clinical Research Co., a CRO which I founded and which began operations in 1999 in Taiwan and subsequently expanded to Korea, and Malaysia by 2000 onwards. The company then stretched to Hong Kong, Singapore and very quickly to the remaining markets in the region. Malaysia therefore represents one of our oldest markets. Back in 2000 we instigated a training programme with the Ministry of Health for the clinical research centres (CRCs) and the company was a pioneer in clinical research in Malaysia. APEX International received a certificate of appreciation from the then Minister of Health of Malaysia back in 2000 for our contribution to education and the training of local Principal Investigators (PIs) and hospitals.
Currently each APAC country has their own regulations pertaining to clinical trials. However as the region is more adaptive to the standards of the International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines the environment has since then become easier to conduct clinical studies. This harmonisation process is also speeding up the process of drug approval, widening the market and furthermore driven the evolution of how clinical trials are conducted in Asia Pacific today. As a result more pharmaceutical companies are investing in the region. In addition, the quality of healthcare and the amount spent on healthcare are both increasing. The quality of the PIs and facilities for clinical trials is also improving. As a global CRO company it is therefore imperative to be in this region.
Malaysia has an ethnically diverse population representing two of the larger Asian markets you mentioned: India and China. How does Malaysia therefore fit with your regional ambitions?
AL: Malaysia is a core destination for clinical trials and the country has a number of advantages. Firstly the pharmaceutical industry and especially clinical trials activities benefits from active government support. At the moment, this is especially being directed towards biotech. Education programmes are also being heavily promoted in the country, which is raising the talent levels of PIs who are participating in clinical trials. As you mention, the multi-ethnic environment provides an excellent base for clinical trials and the attractiveness of the pharmaceutical market is increasing with a 10.5% growth every year for the last five years. The cost of conducting clinical trials in Malaysia is relatively low. The patient recruitment challenges of the West are not an issue in Malaysia and the fact that English is a widely spoken language in Malaysia is also important.
The government is actively supporting clinical trials and has an ambition to increase the number of trials ten-fold by 2020. How do you assess their success so far and what remains to be done to meet these objectives?
AL: Ten years ago the Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) had just been initiated although 99% of PIs and hospitals were not aware of what TCP was. Today this is a different story . Over the last five years there has been a large increase in the number of clinical trials with the numbers doubling over that period. In my opinion, obtaining a ten-fold increase in clinical trials by 2020 is definitely possible.
Li Hoon Lai (LHL): The government is launching a number of initiatives where the NPCB and CRCs are both actively engaging with the CROs and the pharmaceutical industry to involve them in the formation of policy. This demonstrates a real willingness on the part of government to make Malaysia a hub for clinical trials.
The National Medical Registration Register is another important initiative. It is a data repository where the number of clinical researchers and trials is recorded. This allows CROs to have a reference in Malaysia enabling them to assess the experience of PIs for participation in clinical research.
In terms of the private sector we know that MNCs such as Novartis, Sanofi-Aventis and MSD are looking to conduct trials in Malaysia. How do you persuade these companies to use your services?
LHL: PAREXEL has the advantage of clinical research services being at the core of our business. We have local expertise and know-how that meets international standards.
AL: PAREXEL has been in Malaysia for ten years now and over the course of time we have established a good network. We also have talented and experienced people working for the company. In terms of our reputation, we are known for the expertise and caliber of our employees, the high quality of our work, and the advantages of our technologies.
In addition to experience, PAREXEL offers several advantages to potential sponsors. These advantages include eClinical solutions. PAREXEL ‘s wholly owned technology business, Perceptive Informatics, is a leading eClinical solutions provider. We are working with clients in Asia to bring them to date in adapting these integrated eClinical solutions to increase the efficiency and quality of clinical trials. PAREXEL is therefore bringing technology and innovation to the Asian clinical research industry.
Additionally, PAREXEL continues to provide trainings throughout Asia in areas such as project management and medical monitoring by participating in industry events and governmental training programs.
PAREXEL has advisory services, which help Malaysian biopharmaceutical companies to strategically plan their regulatory strategies. PAREXEL has a strong track record of assisting the biotech industry in Taiwan. PAREXEL’s biotech experts can provide a global perspective for young biotech companies, advice pharmaceuticals, and medical devices, as well as international manufacturers on standards for plans to export products outside of the country.
With our many facets of expertise, ranging from regulatory consulting, to training and eClinical solutions, in addition to the company’s years of experience, PAREXEL is a front runner in the CRO industry here in not only Malaysia but globally. MNCs such as Novartis, Sanofi-Aventis, etc. can ensure that PAREXEL is the right partner that’s dedicated on delivering quality results and assist them in achieving their goals.
Regarding your biotech consultancy, we know that the Malaysian biotech industry is still very much in its early stages. What is your current relationship with the local biotech industry?
We are aware that there is a growing need in the biotech industry specifically in Malaysia for the services of a company like PAREXEL, and we’re ready to provide them with our expertise and professional knowledge to achieving their goals.
Our report aims to put Malaysia on the map however the country often is neglected as industry players look to countries like Singapore and Thailand. What will it take to put Malaysia on the map?
Beginning with the comparison between Malaysia and Singapore, then the obvious advantage is the size of the population for patient recruitment and the fact that it is even more ethnically diverse. In comparison to countries such as China and India clearly Malaysia cannot win in terms of the size of the market. However the advantage that Malaysia has over these countries is the fact that the country can provide well-trained English speaking talents that can communicate with global industry players and yet has the ability to speak the local dialect may it be Malay, Hokkien, Chinese, Indu-dialects that facilitate the communication with local PIs or local affiliates of MNCs. Malaysia is therefore a good supplier of talent, and indeed human resources are one of Malaysia’s key advantages.
What is your perspective in transitioning from running APEX to now being General Manager of PAREXEL’s Asia/Pacific region?
Frankly, I’m very honoured to have both had the experiences of founding and expanding APEX to its previous scale as well as having now joining the global company of PAREXEL International, where there is the provision of extensive global resources, worldwide technology infrastructure and various systems and process that are more efficient to work with.
Ultimately, there are two main types of CRO: global and niche. APEX, for example, was considered a niche CRO and the niche was Asia Pacific. However, due to our clients’ change of business strategy of shifting more of their product development activities to Asia, eventually many other players started arriving in Asia Pacific. APEX International needed to alter its business strategies in order to cater client demand as well as sustaining a competitive edge among the players. With these considerations in mind, we decided to become part of a global CRO. We started to partner with PAREXEL and prior to the acquisition we conducted many clinical trials together as alliance partners. PAREXEL is a truly global service provider, with a global footprint of over 79 locations in over 44 countries. This extensive geographical presence allows PAREXEL to conduct clinical trials across every continent and in more than 100 countries.
PAREXEL now has 18 offices throughout important biopharmaceutical centers in the Asia/Pacific region, which in addition to Malaysia, also includes a strong presence in Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand.
This allows us to effectively serve our customer needs on regional and international levels, and bring safe and effective treatments to patients on a regional and international basis as well.
As the head of the Asia Pacific region for PAREXEL how do you see the role of Malaysia evolving?
As a latecomer, Malaysia arrived in the game a little late compared to Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. However, the government has made a commitment to its industry and if biotech begins to boom over the next few years then the country will become a major player in the region.
For PAREXEL Malaysia represents a great environment for human resources. Our Malaysian employees are working throughout the region in China, Taiwan and Singapore. We also aim to help advance high-quality clinical research in Malaysia. Malaysia is therefore a very important country for PAREXEL.
| Company: | Parexel Malaysia |
| Position: | General Manager Asia Pacific |
| Country: | 马来西亚 |