By Sougato Das, President and COO, Life Science Nation (LSN)
As the provider of the global RESI conference, a critical catalyst for life science startups to meet with investors and in-licensors, we get to learn about life science ecosystems across the world. This includes Ukraine, which is in a unique situation in three areas of life sciences, some of which affects global life sciences R&D.
Firstly, Ukraine was a hotbed of industry-sponsored phase 0 – 3 clinical trials. While the majority of these were big pharma-sponsored, a substantial amount were led by early-stage companies. In the three years preceding the current war, from February 2019 to February 2022, there were 446 such trial starts in Ukraine. In the three years since, that number has dropped to just 55. With its former abundance of treatment-naïve patients, low costs, reliable healthcare provider systems and fast investigator recruitment, Ukraine used to be a favorite for companies seeking clinical PoC.
Secondly, based on late 2020 report from BioUkraine, Ukraine was emerging in the field of organic life sciences R&D. It had 15 life science hubs, 75 life science companies (including affiliate offices of large pharmas), hosted 45 life science conferences and had 12 investment firms. Although more recent statistics are not available, recent estimates conclude 20% of scientists have left the country in the last 3 years.
Finally, a lot has been said in the media recently about rare earth metals (REMs) in Ukraine. Generally, we think of these metals in relation to the energy sector, especially batteries. However, 45% of REMs are used for ceramics and alloys, much of which is used in med tech and medicines (e.g. Lanthanum for kidney disease, Yttrium for cancer, Samarium for bone pain). In med devices, REM ceramics are used in electronic implants and hip replacements, while REMs are used extensively in contrast agents, magnets, electronics, x-rays, lasers and dental implants. This does not just include on-market devices; REMs are increasingly being used for developing new kinds of devices, for example, magnets to fulfill therapeutic use cases that do not have adequate solutions today.
In conclusion, Ukraine was, and could once again be, a promising region for life science innovation and research, as well as a source of unique materials for new devices, diagnostics and medicines. Despite the current situation, Ukraine is working with a number of European nations to ensure their regulations, processes and standards are aligned with Western Europe’s so they can move quickly when the opportunity is there. The intent of this article is to highlight the global interconnectedness of the life science innovation ecosystem in light of current events, which will be showcased at RESI Europe with 250 investors and in-licensors, hundreds of startups and dozens of tech hubs in attendance.
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