In the next few days, projects such as chronic nephritis drugs, antioxidant drugs, asthma drugs, hypoglycemic drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, ultrasound blood vessels, bionic painless syringes, artificial blood vessels, and artificial hearts were all launched.
It's okay to say that those five drugs are not eye-catching among the dozens of drugs under development in Sanqing's entire pipeline, as long as they steadily advance clinical trials.
But the three medical device products thrown out at once, including high-tech projects such as artificial hearts and artificial blood vessels, surprised Lu Tingfeng.
"Mr. Wei, these three projects look very high-end. I'm afraid they won't be able to see results in the short term."
Lu Tingfeng looked at the information in front of him with a look of shock, unable to speak clearly.
"Artificial blood vessels, artificial hearts, these are the most cutting-edge technologies, and you can do them. It's really amazing."
"Haha, it's not all my fault, I just made a slight improvement on it."
"The main credit goes to Pangu Research Institute. There are many talented scientific researchers there, and they also cooperate with many scientific research institutions. They often produce some good technical results."
Wei Kang took the lead and said with a smile: "Anyway, let's start the project first. It's one thing to be able to do it in the laboratory, it's another thing to be able to produce it industrially. It's up to you whether you can make back all the money you invested. That’s it.”
"I understand, don't worry, I'll take care of it." Lu Tingfeng agreed without thinking too much.
Mainly because these projects are nothing new. The research in reality is already very mature. Not only has there been a breakthrough from 0 to 1, but it has also developed from 1 to 10, but it has not yet developed from 10 to 100.
Among them, artificial blood vessels were successfully developed in the 1950s and began to be used clinically. However, the main manufacturing materials are polyester, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyurethane (PU) and other polymer inorganic materials.
But so far, artificial blood vessels made of these polymer materials have had various problems and cannot meet the high standards of clinical application.
The main problem is that it can only be used for large blood vessel replacement surgeries and cannot meet the needs of small-diameter artificial blood vessels.
In addition, PU will undergo aging degradation and calcification after long-term use in the body, causing cracks or even complete damage.
These are mainly exogenous implanted materials that trigger immune system attacks and inflammatory reactions, thereby inducing oxidative degradation.
In addition, the development of small-diameter blood vessels within 6 mm has always been an international problem.
Small-diameter artificial blood vessels are mainly used in cardiac bypass surgery. There is a shortage of 1 million heart patients every year. They are high-tech and high-value consumables, and the market prospects are very promising.
In the absence of small-diameter artificial blood vessels, patients can only use their own blood vessels for transplantation, which has very limited sources and can cause huge trauma to the human body.
The thinner the artificial blood vessels, the more expensive they are. A 15-centimeter artificial blood vessel with an inner diameter of 8 mm is worth 4,000 yuan, and one with an inner diameter of 4 mm can easily cost tens of thousands.
There have been studies on this at home and abroad for a long time, and they have focused on biological protein materials such as silk, but no usable products have been available.
Sanqing's artificial blood vessels are made of bionic materials and have a complex structure that is very similar to natural blood vessels. After being implanted in the human body, over time, they will become the same as natural blood vessels in terms of appearance, behavior and function.
The main breakthrough of this technology is a synthetic protein molecule with a special structure of concentric rings, which can give blood vessels extremely strong elasticity and pulling ability, so that they can expand and contract with the flow of blood.
Elastin molecules are stacked layer by layer to form a solid blood vessel wall, and the outer layer is wrapped in a sheath structure. After implantation into the human body, this part of the structure will gradually disappear, forming a highly organized bionic blood vessel.
In this way, the artificial blood vessel can be safely stored in a sterile bag until it is time to transplant it.
As for the artificial heart, after two or three generations of development, it has long been used in clinical treatment.
However, the artificial hearts commonly used on the market are already products from ten years ago.
The heart weighs 900 grams, which is 2-3 times the weight of a healthy human heart.
The external equipment is even more cumbersome. Patients need to carry a set of 4 kilograms of equipment to move around, including a controller, a set of batteries and other driving devices, and they are not allowed to engage in sports.
Because the artificial heart is a battery-powered pump head that needs to be connected to a power cord from inside the body and outside the body, you can imagine how much of a burden this entire set of equipment will bring to the patient.
In addition to maintaining life and being able to move around, it can be said that there is nothing left in the quality of life.
As for the next-generation artificial hearts being vigorously developed by various countries, they basically cannot escape this model. They only have improvements in weight to allow patients to bear less weight every day.
One reason why so many things have to be carried is that the power of the artificial heart is too high, reaching an average of about 20W.
The human body's healthy heart, with a power of only 1.5W, can complete the same work and beat the artificial heart to nothing in seconds.
In comparison, Sanqing's artificial heart is a major breakthrough.
First of all, it uses high-strength bionic materials. The structure is very similar to the natural heart. It can also automatically sense and adjust the blood flow to adapt to the needs of the human body. In this way, the power of the artificial heart is reduced to 3W, which can be said to have quality. improve.
The second step is to remove the power cord. An external power pack can charge the artificial heart wirelessly, as long as it is kept within 3 meters.
After the patient has an artificial heart implanted, he only needs to carry a battery pack the size of a power bank with him, and it can be automatically charged to keep the artificial heart running 24 hours a day. It can also be placed on the bedside for charging at night, which is very convenient.
The artificial heart itself is also very small, with a thickness of 2 cm, a diameter of 3 cm, and a weight of only 90 grams. It is very light and will not add much extra burden to the patient.
Wei Kang believes that with such strong performance of artificial hearts and artificial blood vessels, there will be absolutely no other manufacturers in this market.
The more Lu Tingfeng read these materials, the more frightened he became, and at the same time he became more joyful.
"Mr. Wei, with such an artificial heart, how many heart failure patients can be saved?"
"The price of artificial hearts is quite high. Currently, an imported artificial heart equipment costs one million, which is not affordable for ordinary people."
"Even a domestically produced artificial heart costs 600,000 yuan, and a major heart surgery like this costs 200,000 yuan."
"It is conceivable that the market price is like this. If you want to transplant an artificial heart, you can't even think about it if you don't have 1.8 million."
"By the way, Mr. Wei, how much should we sell it for?"
Lu Tingfeng looked at Wei Kang cautiously, his heart pounding, fearing that his boss would say a number that would give him heart attack.
Wei Kang thought for a moment and then said: "The cost of an artificial heart is still quite high. Besides, there are not many end-stage heart failure patients who can meet the transplant criteria. Clinical trials have not been carried out yet. It is too early to discuss the price. We will see when the time comes. Let the market decide how to price it.”
Lu Tingfeng breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the boss didn't set a super low price for such high-tech equipment, otherwise he would have cried to death.
In fact, Wei Kang was also hesitant and didn't want to set the price now, but he also had a bottom line in mind.
When he first entered the equipment industry, he wanted to squeeze out the water in this industry.
But those are all reusable testing equipment, such as biochemical detectors, B-ultrasound, CT, MRI, capsule gastroscopy, etc., which are used on patients many times every day and are essential for disease diagnosis. Naturally, the price should not be too expensive. .
Even if the price is lowered a little, it can benefit the majority of patients and reduce the burden on medical insurance. This is called water.
But a high-end device like an artificial heart can only be used on one patient and can extend the patient's life for more than ten years. Its value is infinite and immeasurable.
It’s hard to say how much water is in such a high-value piece of equipment.
After all, life is priceless, and it really has to be measured in money, and it will never be too low.
The previous anti-cancer drug sold for 200,000 yuan. In the past few years, although it has gradually decreased, it still costs more than 100,000 yuan.
The average cost of organ transplantation is around 500,000 to 600,000 yuan, and it will be even higher if there is transplant rejection.
Among them, the organs are donated free of charge, and the main expenses are spent on pre- and post-treatment examinations, hospitalization, surgical expenses, etc. Even if the transplant is successful, the patient will have to take anti-rejection drugs for a long time, and the annual drug cost will be 30,000 to 40,000.
However, in many places now, part of the cost of organ transplantation can be reimbursed, including surgical costs and part of the medication.
Generally speaking, after medical insurance reimbursement, the final self-care cost of the patient is about 150,000-200,000.
Logically speaking, the price of artificial organs should be lower than the cost of organ transplantation.
In the minds of the public, artificial organs are definitely not as good as original organs.
If the price is too high, it will not have much effect, and most people will still choose organ transplantation and wait for matching.
As long as the price is lower, many patients will choose to install an artificial organ for transition if they cannot wait.
This will undoubtedly prolong the precious survival time of patients and give them a greater chance of waiting for suitable organs.
Perhaps it can also reduce organ smuggling activities and suppress the rampant black market.
Therefore, between 300,000 and 500,000 is almost the bottom line in his heart.
As for the specific number, it depends on the medical insurance reimbursement situation.
In addition to the artificial organ project, the bionic painless syringe also aroused Lu Tingfeng's interest.
He looked at the drawings and couldn't help but admired them.
"Bionics is really amazing. It can actually imitate the mouthparts of mosquitoes and create similar micro-needles."
"Sure enough, whether it is painless to suck blood or mosquitoes are relatively strong, it is definitely a perfect example created by nature."
"That's natural," Wei Kang said slowly, pointing to the anatomy diagram of the mosquito's mouthparts and comparing it with the microneedle drawing.
"You see, a mosquito has a row of tiny and fine serrated structures on the outside and inside of its lower jaw. The more micro-serrated teeth there are, the stronger its ability to penetrate the skin. At the same time, the tips of the upper lip and lower jaw are also very sharp."
"Before the mosquito pierces, it will straighten its mouthparts and pierce the skin quickly. This is a dynamic impact process. The tip first pierces the surface layer of the skin. As the penetration depth increases, it is accompanied by periodic vibrations, thereby driving the belt Slightly serrated jaws saw through the skin.”
"The whole process combines vibration and penetration, as smooth as a hammer drill piercing butter. It can reach the capillaries without much effort."
"What's even more frightening is that the mosquito's sting force is very slight, only 16.5 micronewtons."
“This penetration force is three orders of magnitude smaller than the minimum penetration force of artificial microneedles, which is 10 millinewtons, and six orders of magnitude smaller than the penetration force of ordinary syringe needles, which is more than ten Newtons.”
"If such a special needle is inserted with an almost undetectable force, can there be no difference in human feelings?"
Lu Tingfeng shook his head and sighed: "Damn mosquitoes, no wonder they don't even notice when they bite people."
"Yes, nature's creations are actually very smart and have different exquisite structures, so we humans need to learn more about nature's clever designs from them." Wei Kang couldn't help but laugh.
Lu Tingfeng couldn't help but think deeply: "That's true. I'm very optimistic about this product. More importantly, we can extend this bionic idea to the research and development of medical devices."
Next, the two discussed the situation of the project for a while, and then Lu Tingfeng got up and left.
When he left, he looked excited and his whole person fell into an excited mood.
It seems that he is not going to work, but a general heading to the battlefield.
Wei Kang was speechless when he saw Lu Tingfeng's appearance.
This subordinate works really hard. Although his achievements are obvious to all, something happens every time.
The first two times he suffered from myocardial infarction, the hospital sent him there twice, which directly promoted the birth of Sanqing Medical Clinic with his own efforts.
"This time, I hope nothing will happen to you again."
"I've been to the hospital twice, so I'll learn some lessons."
Wei Kang thought silently for a few seconds and felt that there should be no more problems.
To put it bluntly, in this case, even a pig should know that health is the most important thing.
****
"Tuk-tuk!"
Suddenly there was a knock on the door.
Wei Kang raised his head and saw a familiar figure appearing at the door.
He immediately came forward in surprise: "Uncle Sun, are you back to work after the holiday?"
It was Sun Chengren who appeared at the door. He took Wei Kang's arm with a smile and sat down on the sofa in the reception area.
"I brought some things from home and when I gave them to Lianyun, she said that she was preparing for pregnancy and some of the things might not be suitable for her to eat."
"That's when I learned the good news." Sun Chengren looked at Wei Kang, the loving light in his eyes flashing: "I watched you step by step, your career became bigger and stronger, and you found a good wife to get married, soon It’s great to have kids again.”
Wei Kang chuckled: "It's still early for the baby. Aren't you preparing for it? It's not like you're pregnant."
Sun Chengren smiled, patted Wei Kang's arm hard, and said: "The old Wei family is finally happy, I'm really happy."
"But, since you are having a baby, I think what you said last time is very right."
"No, not long after I came back, I got another good news."
Sun Chengren took out a document from his handbag and handed it over.
"You asked me to find a farm suitable for raising pigs, chickens, and organic ingredients, and I found it for you!"
