Exports of pharmaceutical products to Greece exceeded 2.5 billion euros in 2022, occupying the second place among Greek manufacturing products, with a share of 4.7% of all exports according to IOBE research.

A total of 108,000 workers are employed in the field of medicine in the Greek territory, with the German pharmaceutical companies active in Greece contributing decisively to the development of the sector, holding approximately 10% of the local market.

This opens up prospects both for new investments and for the promotion of scientific research, as reflected in the events organized by the Export Initiative for the Health Economy of Germany Trade & Invest in collaboration with the Hellenic German Trade and Chamber of Industry.

Opportunities for drug development in Greece by German companies

Europe and Germany at the crossroads of the pandemic have lost drug production units in China and India and the big challenge is attracting new investment in the sector.

The geographical position, the scientific potential of Greece combined with the positive wind that seems to be blowing in investments in the country attract the interest for further investments in the pharmaceutical industry.

“Our goal is innovative medicines that benefit patients and contribute to improving the sustainability of the health system and at the same time are a pillar of development,” says Dimitris Anagnostakis, President & CEO of Boehringer Ingelheim Hellas SA and vice president of Greek-German Chamber.

“For example, one of our anti-stroke drugs, if the patient takes it within the first 8 hours, neurological deficits and other disabilities are reduced. In this way, the burden on the health system, government expenditure is reduced and the social cost is also reduced”, says Mr. Anagnostakis.

Boehringer Ingelheim Greece has a program of significant investments in the coming years that will increase its staff, with the production of innovative treatments in areas where there are unmet medical needs, such as mental health and cardiometabolic diseases.

Brakes for further investments are the so-called clawback, that is, the return of an amount of money from the pharmaceutical companies to the public, and specifically to the EOPYY and the Ministry of Health, which results annually from exceeding the pre-determined limit of the pharmaceutical expenditure budget. “The use of therapeutic protocols in electronic prescribing and the utilization of data on how much and which drugs are needed could contribute to the rational use of drugs and reducing the problem,” emphasizes Mr. Anagnostakis.

“What we want is to develop innovative solutions for unmet medical needs. Many times a new drug comes with software that supports it. We give products to patients who do not find solutions in existing treatments and we work to make them accessible to everyone”, points out Sonia Mousavere, Director of Communication of Bayer Hellas.

In collaboration with technology companies, the German company is developing applications that will make it easier for the patient to monitor his health and to be able to give real data to his doctor in order to quickly receive the appropriate treatment, for example in venous thrombosis where there is a risk of pulmonary embolism and the need direct communication with his doctor. “Innovative drugs to treat radical disease are the only solution with population growth straining national health systems. We have already developed personalized therapy to address a specific mutation in solid tumors with 98% effectiveness,” says Ms Mousavere.

Greek-German cooperation in the treatment of cancer

Investing in research to find new treatments and especially for difficult and long-term diseases is the bet of the next day. Since 2018, the National Research Foundation with participating clinics and public hospitals from Greece collaborate with the leading German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) through the Integrated Cancer Research Center in Athens (ACCC) with the aim of a multidisciplinary and holistic approach and treatment of the disease. “Greek scientists benefited as scholarship holders, they ran multicenter studies in Greece for children with oncological cancers and above all, young children and adults with colon cancer benefited,” says DKFZ Professor of Nuclear Medicine, Antonia Dimitrakopoulou, speaking to Deutsche Welle – Strauss. Through this collaboration the participating doctors get valuable experience, participating in oncology councils, but also nurses and biologists learn from the German know-how the best management of samples and molecular analyses. “More patients, more results,” characteristically says Dr. Maria Filippidou from the Department of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology of the Hagia Sophia Children’s Hospital who participated in the program, continuing: “Patients through the molecular analyzes were able, due to the appropriate indications, to receive the appropriate treatments. Six to ten patients, while they had an unfavorable prognosis based on their disease, with targeted treatments have achieved long-term survival of over five years and a very good quality of life. They are back at home in their school in their family.”

But how close are we to treating cancer?

“Cancer is a very heterogeneous disease, different for each patient and metastasis. I see the idea of ​​a cancer vaccine with reservations because of the multiplicity of the goal it has to achieve. Maybe a combination of it with existing treatments will improve patients’ lives,” Mrs. Dimitrakopoulou-Strauss answers to Deutsche Welle. For her, perhaps a preventive vaccine like the one against cervical cancer, would have more results. The road of the battle against cancer is long and such scientific collaborations certainly give a breath of hope for something brighter in its future treatment.