5 October 2017 - Swiss pharma's effort could spark broad changes in nation's pricing system.

Swiss drugmaker Novartis seeks to bring a cutting-edge cancer treatment to Japan under a pricing model linked to patient outcomes, asking for payments from only those who benefit from the therapy.

Charging based on results could aid patients in gaining access to the treatments they want and need, said Vasant Narasimhan, global head of drug development and incoming CEO of the world's No. 2 pharmaceutical company, to The Nikkei in a recent interview. Japan has never implemented such a payment scheme.

At issue is Kymriah, a new treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in children and young adults. Kymriah in August became the first CAR-T cell therapy -- one that uses the patient's own genetically altered immune cells to treat cancer -- to obtain approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Only one round of treatment is needed, and the therapy is shown to be effective in 80% of patients.

Read Nikkei Asian Review article