First Quarter 2008 - Issues in Hematology - ION Solutions

industry insightWhat differentiates Hospira from itscompetitors in the oncology market?We are a diversifi ed healthcare company,specializing in both drugs and devices. Whilemost of our competitors have a businessstrategy aligned to only one segment – eitherdrugs or devices – at Hospira, we have chosento build and invest in both. This allows us tooffer a complete and diverse suite of solutionsto oncologists.How strong is Hospira’s pipeline? Arethere any new upcoming products you candiscuss?region. We currently have a very strong presencein Australia and New Zealand, and a consistentlygrowing presence in Japan.Companies must pick and choose whichcustomer needs to serve. One company simplycannot do everything, and you must focus yourresources. At Hospira, we have chosen oncologyand acute care as primary components of ourstrategy to bring novel products to market andto address patient and clinical needs for theseimportant therapies. We are also expanding ourposition in biosimilars and proprietary drugs inboth acute care and oncology, primarily throughclinical development.Hospira’s pipeline is robust, with 43 newmolecules in development as of early 2008.This includes biogenerics and a large numberof oncology products for either direct therapyof tumors or supportive care. We expect tointroduce several of these products in theupcoming year.With our recent launch of generic irinotecan inthe U.S., patients with colon or rectal cancerwhose disease has recurred or progressedfollowing therapy with other treatments now haveanother viable treatment option, at a dramaticallyreduced cost. We also launched Retacrit, ourbiosimilar version of erythropoietin, in February inGermany and Austria, with plans to roll it out inthe major European markets throughout 2008.Whether we are expanding our product portfolioor our geographic reach, our strategy is unifi edby a common question: How can we advancewellness for clinicians and the patients theyserve? As long as we maintain that vision, I amconfi dent that we will continue to make the rightinvestments to better serve healthcare industryneeds worldwide. ❚oncologistics volume 7, issue 1 - spring 2008 10What new geographic markets or marketsegments do you see Hospira expanding inthe near and long term?Hospira will grow our presence in Europe andAsia. In some of these countries, we currentlyuse distributors. Moving forward, we will increaseour direct presence in some areas with strongand growing patient needs, such as Poland, theCzech Republic, Turkey and the Asia-Pacifi c