(Yicai) July 29 -- Pfizer aims to market more than 15 new cancer treatments or new indications in China by 2030, Wang Yu, general manager of the American drugmaker's oncology business in China, said in an exclusive interview with Yicai.

This means that new drugs for China should synchronize with the world as much as possible in terms of research and development, submitting sales applications, and launching sales, she added.

China has many needs unmet in terms of cancer prevention and treatment. Despite a big increase in the survival rate of lung cancer, the country still needs to work to reach its 2030 goal of a five-year survival rate of 46.6 percent for all cancers, Wang said.

Pfizer has brought 15 cancer treatments to Chinese patients since it entered the market 35 years ago, covering lung, breast, and blood cancers, as well as tumors in the digestive system. 

In the future, R&D will become more diverse as instead of developing alone, Pfizer is looking for joint R&D and joint clinical registrations, done in stages, according to Wang. Prizer China started cooperating with several domestic biotech firms in 2021, and the firm is likely to seek partners in fields such as lung cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. 

Prizer has accumulated a lot of experience in developing targeted drugs, Wang said. Cooperating with antibody-drug conjugate affiliate Seagen, the American firm aims to attack cancer cells more precisely while reducing side effects to benefit patients, she noted.

In 2022, Pfizer became the world's first drugmaker to exceed USD100 billion in revenue due to Covid-19 vaccines and related oral drugs. But as income stemming from the pandemic subsided, the firm earned USD58.5 billion in revenue last year, and USD11.6 billion of that from its cancer business. Late last year, Prizer set up a dedicated global oncology division.

Prizer said early this year it aims to unveil at least eight heavyweight anticancer products globally by 2030 while two-thirds of oncology income should come from novel anticancer products at that time. 

Editors: Shi Yi, Emmi Laine