In one example, patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are now benefiting from a type of immunotherapy called chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. The approach pioneered by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, involves the extraction of immune cells from a patient modified with cancer targeting proteins and given back to the patient. These cells are “living drugs” in the patient’s body with autologous therapies tailored to each patient.
Other macro life sciences influencers are driving a shift in products coming to market specifically within oncology, CNS (central nervous system), and systemic anti-infectives. These innovative therapies challenge the traditional life sciences supply chain, increasing the need for secure and authenticated drugs that are delivered without delay and kept at a verifiable temperature. The right treatment needs to be delivered to the right patient at the right time, all through a secure supply chain.
With many serialization and track & trace regulations in the compliance period, and others (e.g., EU FMD, US DSCSA) on the horizon, life sciences companies need to think beyond serialization as a core capability and prepare for the next generation of supply chain. Verifying the provenance of a medicine—from where its ingredients were made and where the drug was manufactured, to how the medicine was handled through the endto-end supply chain and all the way to the patient in a trusted manner, is becoming an increasingly mandatory supply chain capability.
That scenario is now possible using blockchain technology.
Blockchain (sometimes referred to as Distributed Ledger Technology, or DLT) is protected by cryptography, that allows a network of nodes to collectively maintain a shared ledger of information without the need for complete trust between the nodes. Blockchain is essentially a time-sequenced chain of events based on an agreed upon consensus mechanism. The mechanism guarantees that, as long as the majority of the network validates the entries (i.e., the “blocks”) posted to the ledger (i.e., the “chain) as per stated governance rules, information stored on the blockchain can be trusted as reliable.
Investors and enterprises across multiple industries and functions have taken notice of blockchain’s potential. Recently, investment and spending on blockchain-based technology have each topped more than $1 billion, and continues to accelerate. Accenture’s current projections for the blockchain services market alone estimates a CAGR of more than 60 percent, hitting close to $7 billion by 2021. Within life sciences alone, blockchain technology could provide a $3 billion dollar opportunity by 2025.
