华东医药:2023年年度报告(英文版)

Huadong Medicine Co., Ltd.
2023AnnualReport
April 2024

ALetter to the Shareholders
Distinguished shareholders,
As time flies, we usher in a new year with endless possibilities. Over the past
year, we have witnessed and experienced profound changes brought by the era. The
pharmaceutical industry is marching towards a new track of increasingly healthy and
compliant high-quality development driven by continuous pressures it withstands,
accelerated industrial clearing due to medical anti-corruption, and continuously
increased values of innovative medicines. We are keenly aware that we can tide over
the difficulties only by constantly fostering our resilience for development, which
will be achieved through our down-to-earth efforts.
Since we started our innovation and transformation, we have gradually defined
development strategies for our four major business segments of pharmaceutical
industry, pharmaceutical business, aesthetic medicine and industrial microbiology.
Thanks to our consistent practice, we have transformed our innovative R&D system
from external introduction to “self-development + introduction” step by step and have
successfully achieved historic breakthrough in both innovative R&D team building
and its capacity, with an industry chain for the complete cycle of innovation medicine
R&D fostered. To date, we have established over 100 pharmaceutical product
pipelines, including more than 60 pipelines for innovative products, and built the
R&D ecology with Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. as the
core.
In 2023, our constant efforts have been bearing fruits. The Liraglutide Injection
was successfully launched, and had its marketing authorization application for
diabetes, obesity or overweight applications approved successively, being the first of
its kind in China and playing a leading role in the GLP-1 track. In the meantime,
applications for launching of multiple blockbuster products were submitted.
Mirvetuximab Soravtansine Injection, a global pioneering ADC medicine, was firstly
launched in Hainan, benefiting over 30 patients. Its application for launching in
China was accepted in October 2023. Ustekinumab Injection (QX001S) was the first
of its kind in China submitting the BLA, which was already accepted. Marketing
authorization applications of Rilonacept Injection for Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic
Syndromes and recurrent pericarditis were accepted by NMPA, expecting to benefit
patients with rare diseases as soon as possible. In addition, the Company has also
seen achievements in R&D of innovative medicines. Applications on IND of
HDM1002, a small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist with global innovation level,
were accepted in both China and the U.S. Its clinical trials are now progressing
smoothly. The application on IND of HDM1005, a GLP-1 and GIP dual-target
innovative medicine, in China was successfully approved, and its clinical trials have
been officially launched. The application on IND of HDM2005, the first ADC
innovative medicine independently developed by the Company, was submitted and
accepted. A variety of independent innovation achievements of the Company have
also debuted at diverse key international academic conferences and journals, further
showcasing our unremitting endeavors and positive results in independent innovation.
All these have laid a solid foundation for our future development and expansio n.
In 2023, we embraced more exchanges through opening up, expanded
cooperation, and consolidated resilience for development. Zevorcabtagene Autoleucel
Injection, a CAR-T product introduced in early 2023, was successfully launched in
2024. The Company will continue to roll out its businesses in the field of cell therapy.
The Company introduced various types of global innovative external preparations
from Arcutis in the U.S. and MC2 in Denmark, further enriching our pipelines of
external preparations in the field of immunity and fostering a “golden combination”
that features a multi-target point and multi-acting mechanism in psoriasis treatment.
In the aesthetic medicine field, the Company introduced ATGC-110 from ATGC in
South Korea and YY001 from Chongqing Yuyan in China, two new botulinum toxin
products under research, fully enriching the Company’s pipelines in facial injection
products through differentiated positioning. In the industrial microbiology segment,
the Company set foot in the field of animal health through its holding subsidiary
Jiangsu Nanjing Nongda Animal Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and won the exclusive
selling right of Baoshining®, the first new opioid veterinary drug for central analgesia
in China. The Company has continued to optimize its layout of pet protection
products.
Looking into 2024, we will always place our focus on “development of the
innovative medicine industry”. In this year’s government work report, the term
“innovative medicine” was mentioned for the first time. It will occupy an
i