Drugs, Gentile (Takeda): “Innovative and fundamental plasma derivatives such as vaccines’

“Plasma-derived drugs represent a great innovation, for some therapies they are real irreplaceable lifesavers. Our task is to guarantee the continuity of treatments for patients. We cannot go back, but look ahead and find a solution for a drug that has characteristics. exactly the same as drugs for which politics has already found solutions, has already made decisions. I am referring to the case of anti-Covid vaccines “. Thus Luca Gentile, Public Affairs and Communication Director at Takeda Italy, speaking at the 15th appointment of ‘Camerae Sanitatis’ entitled ‘The impact of plasma-derived therapies in Europe: solutions for Italy’. The online event promoted by the Intergroup Parliamentary Science & Health, Sics, ‘Quotidiano Sanità’ and ‘Popular Science’, with the non-conditioning contribution of Takeda, was in fact dedicated to the theme of blood donation and plasma-derived products at 360 °. Objective of the meeting: to understand the need to revisit the donation schemes to guarantee the supply of plasma in Italy. “Vaccines are produced from biological material and are not chemically synthesized drugs, just like plasma derivatives – underlines Gentile – Furthermore, like orphan drugs, plasma derivatives are also intended for the treatment of some rare genetic diseases. It is important to underline that for other drugs similar choices have been made. We hope that politics can field solutions in the short, medium and long term “. What are the peculiarities related to the production and supply processes of plasma derivatives and what affects the production capacity? “The production of plasma-derived drugs is very complex – says Gentile – An element that should not be underestimated. The private production sector, which has no alternatives in the public system – I note that, if for a moment we eliminate the private industry, these fantastic products unfortunately would have no alternatives – it totally depends on the supply of plasma, which cannot be synthesized, and on voluntary donations. The donation system in Italy is a virtuous system, although there is a need to increase the supply , but it is necessary to find solutions from an industrial point of view in the short, medium and long term because unfortunately the supply of plasma is not something that happens in a very short time “. It is necessary “to sensitize people”, Gentile points out, because “without plasma the pharmaceutical industry stops completely. So this bond makes plasma a very precious raw material which, like drinking water, energy sources, rare metals , is a global strategic resource for the next decade “. The peculiarity of this type of production, according to Gentile “is such that the time that elapses from donation to the provision of plasma-derived drugs passes from 8 to 12 months, something that is not seen in other pharmaceutical sectors”. Finally, he concludes, “for some plasma derivatives and the production of these drugs, Italy is totally dependent on abroad, because they require such particular characteristics that require targeted collection that is difficult to implement with voluntary donation”.