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New medical drugs

New medical drugs
Latest news and updates on medical drug research and breakthroughs.
The total pet population in China reached 430 million in 2024, with nearly one-third of urban cats classified as obese, according to the China Pet Industry Association. Photo: Shutterstock
Made in China 2025

Meow or never: China’s pudgy pets spark race for weight-loss drugs

Fosun and Huadong biotech labs eye feline obesity drugs as owners weigh cuteness against health risks.

Artificial intelligence

MindRank in Phase 3 trial with first AI-assisted new drug

Science

China’s biopharma sector ‘in prime position to challenge US leadership’

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Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Genomic sequencing puts Hong Kong at forefront of cancer care innovation

Scientist Aya El Helali says research speeds up cancer treatment discovery and helps the city bridge mainland China with global drug development.

Aya El Helali is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Hong Kong’s department of clinical oncology. Photo: Jonathan Wong
Wellness

As weight-loss drugs reduce appetites, US restaurants cut portion sizes

Some New York restaurants are offering smaller portions at lower prices to appeal to those on hunger-reducing GLP-1 weight-loss medications.

Medicine

No need for needles? US approves Wegovy pill for weight loss

Novo Nordisk’s daily medication offers an oral alternative to blockbuster injections, with a launch expected in early January.

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United States

Are Chinese biotechs what the doctor ordered as Big Pharma faces ‘patent cliff’?

US drug makers are racing to plug looming ‘patent cliff’ revenue gaps – and increasingly they are turning to China biotechs.

US drugmakers are increasingly looking to Chinese biotechs as an answer to the revenue gaps left by the looming ‘patent cliff’. Illustration by Henry Wong
Made in China 2025

China’s pharmaceutical industry transforms into a global innovation powerhouse

The China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index, a new gauge, highlights top drug makers on the mainland for the first time.

Science

Sperm quality decline: could easy-to-use balm from China solve the crisis?

In China, unhealthy lifestyles, pollution and work-related stress are cited in public health discussions around declining sperm quality.

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China economy

Opinion | How China engineered the rapid rise of its drug innovation industry

A market once dominated by generics is now an AI-powered pharmaceutical hub drawing billion-dollar investments from the likes of Pfizer and GSK.

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A worker checks the position of a feeding tray in a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility at the Hengrui Biomedical Industrial Park in Lianyungang in Jiangsu province, on December 13, 2021. Photo: Getty Images
Hansoh Pharmaceutical

6 of the best: the billion-dollar biotechs putting China on the map

China’s biotech renaissance is gathering pace as home-grown innovators strike billion-dollar licensing deals with global giants.

Illustration: Henry Wong
China’s private sector

Fosun brings UK particle therapy to mainland China in advanced cancer care push

The US Food and Drug Administration-approved Marie system promises human-centred care, advanced technology and lower costs.

Biomedicine: Companies

China biotech forum bills antibody cancer drugs as next-generation treatment

Biotech insiders tout antibody-drug conjugates as the next big thing in cancer treatment, with firms urged to pursue global strategies.

Hong Kong stock market

China’s Akeso gets share boost as data shows cancer drug’s benefits

Lung-cancer drug ivonescimab is ‘potentially two to three years ahead of competitors’, analyst says.

Trial showed “a decisive and strong positive outcome with both significant and clinically meaningful benefits”, Akeso said. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Companies

Hansoh and Leads Biolabs clinch US$2.5 billion in global drug licensing deals

Two mainland biotech firms win global attention as Roche and Dianthus sign major licensing pacts, highlighting China’s growing role in next-generation drug development.

China’s Hansoh and Leads Biolabs clinch US$2.5 billion in global drug licensing deals
Mergers & Acquisitions

CK Life unit merges with TransCode as Li Ka-shing firm eyes anticancer drugs

Upon completion of the transaction, CK Life will own about 9.1 per cent of TransCode’s outstanding common shares.

Health & Fitness

Li Ka-shing-backed focused ultrasound therapy treats 1 millionth case

The therapy, which uses ultrasound energy to treat a number of diseases including cancer, is gaining global traction, a US expert says.

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United States

China’s pharmaceutical sector surges amid growth in sales, licensing income

Strong growth momentum and global push expected to continue, HSBC says.

Chinese pharmaceutical companies’ licensing deals made up about 50 per cent of the total value of such transactions worldwide in the first eight months of the year. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Industry Trends

China’s drug developers stretch to become a global force

Although a start-up’s recent triumph is seen as a ‘DeepSeek moment’, domestic players still trail world-beating pharma firms, experts say.

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IPO

Chinese healthcare, biotech firms flock to Hong Kong for IPOs

September yields at least 23 listing applications from mainland biotech firms eyeing the city’s lucrative fundraising market.

Biomedicine: Companies

Pfizer’s Metsera acquisition to spur Chinese search for new weight drugs

The deal, worth up to US$7.3 billion, will encourage ongoing investment by mainland players but not draw in new rivals, analysts say.

The Pfizer deal is not good news for Chinese firms developing weight-loss drugs with the aim of reducing injections, an analyst says. Photo: Shutterstock
Biomedicine: Companies

China’s Hengrui gets boost from fifth drug-licensing deal of year

Shares rise after Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals strikes deal for cancer drug.

A worker checks a machine at Hengrui Biomedical Industrial Park in Lianyungang, in East China’s Jiangsu province, on December 13, 2021. Photo: Future Publishing via Getty Images
US-China relations

Opinion | Why US-China health and drugs cooperation must top Trump-Xi agenda

The years-long impasse harms both nations and the world, and the stakes in global health security could not be higher.

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Health in China

Beijing tackles drug price wars with new tendering rules in anti-involution push

China’s new drug procurement rules prioritise quality over price in a bid to curb cutthroat competition.

Biomedicine: Companies

Ascletis trial shows drug candidate ASC47 boosts semaglutide weight loss effect

Chinese biotech firm is among dozens of mainland drug makers seeking to compete in the global market for diabetes and weight-loss drugs.

China’s weight-loss drugs market could grow to US$5.6 billion in 2035, according to Goldman Sachs. Photo: Shutterstock
Fosun Group

Fosun’s Henlius in talks with Johnson & Johnson, Roche on cancer drug

Shanghai Henlius Biotech is in talks with multinational pharmaceutical firms about selling them the rights to an experimental cancer drug.

Fosun International’s Guo Guangchang. Photo: Thomas Yau
China technology

China’s biotech industry is gaining on the US. Can tariffs hold them back?

Pharmaceutical firms in China have grown fast, but geopolitics and a long head start could keep US-based leaders at industry apex - for now.

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China Future Tech briefing

Biomedicine | China goes big on weight-loss drugs in Novo, Eli Lilly challenge

Demand for anti-obesity drugs has expanded along with people’s waistlines, and Chinese companies are seeking to cash in with new treatments.

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