
Column - April 17, 2024
Building and bridging the most innovative life science cluster in the EU
Boston’s Kendall Square, close to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is known as “The most innovative square mile on the planet” and, apart from our preference for the metric system, there just might be something we could learn from the Americans. One of the recommendations is that public and private stakeholders, inspired by the success […]

Column - January 31, 2024
Women’s Health – a new Nordic stronghold?
Women’s health has been under-prioritized for a long time. It should be no surprise that women are approximately one half of the world’s population. Yet remarkably, only 1% of healthcare research and innovation is invested in specific female conditions outside oncology. At Medicon Valley Alliance we have decided to pick up the gauntlet and test the interest […]

Column - October 18, 2023
The Vital Role of Venture Capital
Life sciences has experienced remarkable transformations in recent years, driven by cutting-edge research, technological advancements, and the pursuit of improved health outcomes. The number of early and mid-stage biotech companies has increased substantially in recent decades. There is one, in our view, major obstacle to unleashing the potential of the life science industry in Norway: […]

Column - October 3, 2023
EU’s proposed pharma legislation may backfire for access to new medicines
The newly proposed EU pharmaceutical legislation aims to increase access to medicines for patients in all EU member states, but as the proposed changes in intellectual property rights for new drugs put European innovation at risk it may have the opposite effect. The European Commission put forth its long-awaited proposal for the new European pharmaceutical […]

Column - September 18, 2023
“Nordic Research Infrastructures is key to our innovation performance”
In June 2023, the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union called for reinforcing, accelerating, and maximizing the benefits of fair and open research data in Europe, within scientific communities and through research infrastructures, to increase the overall research and innovation performance in Europe and strengthen the outreach to and impact on industry […]

Column - July 19, 2023
The journey to market for micro-sized and small companies
Sweden’s plethora of micro-sized and small biotech companies create a richness of innovations and a culture of knowledge sharing. To bring good science to market, they also need business intelligence and the right capital. Sweden boasts a thriving growth of micro-sized and small biotech companies that contribute to a dynamic, innovative climate and a culture […]
Commentary
Commentary – December 11, 2024
AI and the 2024 Nobel Prizes: A Revolutionary Moment for Life Sciences
The 2024 Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Physics reflect the revolutionary impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on life sciences. These awards, celebrating advancements in protein design and neural networks, demonstrate how AI is transforming how we approach drug discovery, personalized medicine, and healthcare management.
Commentary – July 3, 2024
Commentary: Navigating the Obesity Market
Challenges and Funding Dilemmas from an International and Nordic Perspective. It is no secret that obesity is one of the biggest public health challenges of the 21st century and is one of the leading causes of preventable death globally. It’s estimated that 18% of the global population is obese, with the prevalence of obesity in […]
Commentary – March 22, 2023
Oligos – The medicines of the future?
What if we could silence certain genes to treat a wide range of medical conditions, from genetic conditions to infectious diseases, and even cancer? It may sound like science fiction, but for some rare diseases it’s already a reality through the use of oligonucleotide therapeutics, sometimes referred to as the medicines of the future. But […]
Commentary – October 31, 2022
Pandemic Preparedness
Staffan Svärd, Professor, Scientific Lead for SciLifeLab’s Pandemic Laboratory Preparedness Capability, writes about how lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic can increase our pandemic preparedness. Early in the pandemic, SciLifeLab, together with Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, launched a major national COVID-19 research program. Today SciLifeLab has a government mandate to coordinate and expand the […]
Commentary – June 15, 2022
Health in the shadow of war
There is a massive need for medicines and medical care in war-torn Ukraine, but getting aid supplies through is virtually impossible. At the same time, the Swedish healthcare service faces medical challenges as Ukrainian refugee patients arrive in Sweden. Bengt Mattson, special adviser at the trade association for the research-based pharmaceutical industry in Sweden (Lif), […]
Commentary – November 22, 2021
#WAAW: Fighting antibiotic resistance by strengthening our immune system
I began to be interested in the problem of antibiotic resistance almost 30 years ago. A couple of colleagues and I were evaluating some patent applications describing the possibilities of replacing antibiotics in animal feed with lactobacillus. At that time, similarly to today, antibiotics were routinely used to stimulate the growth of animals raised for […]
Commentary – June 1, 2019
Data Protection and Medical Progress: striking the right balance
An individual’s medical data is clearly one of the most private elements of personal data – quite clearly deserving of the highest level of data protection.
Commentary – November 29, 2018
Patient-focused treatments
Patient-focused treatments in cancer care – an opportunity for Swedish life science The increased knowledge in cancer biology and the introduction of new drugs have contributed to an improved survival and, in many cases, also to increased quality of life. However, not everyone benefits. In fact, the positive effects are only seen in a smaller […]
Commentary – October 31, 2018
How will brexit affect the pharmaceutical sector
How will Brexit affect the pharmaceutical sector? Brexit and the implications of the UK’s departure from the European Union (EU) continue to dominate the news agenda and industry discussions. Here, Thomas Beck, Senior Vice President, Quality Management at Recipharm, gives his views on the relocation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the need for a […]