Takeda launches a Crohn’s disease digital twin simulator using PwC’s Bodylogical® for use in physician engagement
Medical Science Liaisons of Takeda will use the app to support scientific discussions with expert physicians
18th May 2021
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
PwC Consulting LLC
Osaka, Japan and Tokyo, Japan, May 18, 2021 - Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE: 4502/NYSE: TAK) ('Takeda') and PwC Consulting LLC ('PwC Consulting') today announced the launch of a Crohn’s disease digital twin simulator, developed using Bodylogical®, a modelling and simulation technology developed and provided by PwC and calibrated using Takeda clinical trial data.
Takeda and PwC Consulting first announced their partnership to develop a digital twin simulator using a mechanistic model of Crohn’s disease (CD) built using PwC’s Bodylogical® in September 2019. The model, which has been built from the ground up for Takeda using medical science and published research, has been trained and calibrated with clinical trial data from Takeda, and its prediction accuracy is being tested with real patients. The two companies have together initiated two papers on the model development and validation for review and publication in peer-reviewed academic journals.
The simulator is an interactive tablet application available to Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs) of Takeda’s Japan Medical Office who will be using it in scientific discussions with a select group of expert physicians, mainly gastroenterologists. The app (‘the MSL app’) lets the MSLs or the experts physicians select CD digital twins from a library of CD virtual patients with varying histories and disease states, simulate outcomes under different disease management options and potentially understand the patient journey better. It also includes computer generated endoscopy images to help visualise the model-simulated outcomes. These MSL activities using the MSL app are a part of Takeda’s Patient First Program.
Taku Kobayashi, M.D., Ph.D, a clinical immunology and gastroenterology expert at Kitasato University’s Center for Advanced IBD Research and Treatment, who is also a collaborator in the validation of the digital twin simulation model says, ‘As the number of treatment options increase, finding the best treatment of choice for each patient has become more challenging. This project is an important step not only towards solving this issue, but also towards allowing patients to truly benefit from the increase in options and medical advances’.
‘We always aim to address the needs of our patients and leading this project to address those is truly inspirational. In particular, the CD Digital Twin app will enable our MSLs to have more meaningful scientific discussions with the physicians, and the initial feedback we have received has been very positive. Our hope is ultimately to provide solutions to CD patients to help them understand their disease,’ remarks Jovelle Fernandez, Head of the Japan Medical Office and leader of the Patient First Program.
Yujiro Tsutsumi, Partner of PwC Consulting, Strategy& and Leader of Bodylogical® Japan says, ‘Our partnership with Takeda is built on common goals towards helping patients. Working together, we have been able to build a powerful new simulation tool that lets us predict what will happen to a CD patient in the future if they take a certain drug and we see this as a big step towards personalised medicine that will eventually improve quality of life.’
Takeda and PwC Consulting will continue to work together to improve the accuracy of treatment simulations that match the characteristics of individual patients with CD and build new tools for physicians to simulate potential outcomes and promote shared decision-making on treatments that are tailored to the patient.
About Takeda’s Patient First Program
The Patient First Program is one of Takeda’s initiatives to address the unmet medical needs of patients, with the aim of providing integrated care (comprehensive care) through collaboration with relevant stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, other companies, organizations, and government agencies involved in patient journey. This is a reinforcement of Takeda's commitment to patients led by Japan Medical Office (JMO) which is independent of the commercial and sales divisions. JMO plays a central role in discussions and seamless collaboration with stakeholders surrounding patients’ care and through PFP, JMO aspires to provide solutions to address those needs.
Takeda’s commitment to gastroenterology
Gastrointestinal disorders sometimes make a patient's daily life difficult. For more than 25 years, Takeda and its partners have responded to this unmet medical need by improving the quality of life of patients through innovative medicines and dedicated support programs. Takeda is also a leader in the field of gastrointestinal diseases with high unmet medical needs, including inflammatory bowel disease, acid-related diseases and gastrointestinal motility disorders. Takeda's research and development team in the field of gastrointestinal diseases is developing treatments for celiac disease and liver disease, as well as academic development through treatments derived from intestinal bacteria. Takeda will continue to contribute to improving the quality of life of patients in the field of gastrointestinal diseases through innovative pharmaceuticals.
About Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE:4502/NYSE:TAK) is a global, values-based, R&D-driven biopharmaceutical leader headquartered in Japan, committed to discover and deliver life-transforming treatments, guided by our commitment to patients, our people and the planet. Takeda focuses its R&D efforts on four therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Genetics and Hematology, Neuroscience, and Gastroenterology (GI). We also make targeted R&D investments in Plasma-Derived Therapies and Vaccines. We are focusing on developing highly innovative medicines that contribute to making a difference in people’s lives by advancing the frontier of new treatment options and leveraging our enhanced collaborative R&D engine and capabilities to create a robust, modality-diverse pipeline. Our employees are committed to improving quality of life for patients and to working with our partners in health care in approximately 80 countries.
About Bodylogical®
Bodylogical® is PwC’s scientifically-developed predictive engine that mechanistically simulates the human body and its functions by mirroring the body’s own physiological systems—circulatory, respiratory, digestive, endocrine, renal, and more—to create a unique model of every unique life.
About PwC
At PwC, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. We’re a network of firms in 155 countries with more than 284,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, advisory and tax services.
About PwC Consulting LLC
PwC Consulting LLC offers comprehensive consulting services from strategy through execution. In collaboration with the PwC global network we work to resolve complex and challenging management issues faced by our clients, helping them bolster their competitive advantage in the global market.
About Strategy&
Strategy& is a global strategy consulting business uniquely positioned to help deliver your best future: one that is built on differentiation from the inside out and tailored exactly to you. As part of PwC, every day we’re building the winning systems that are at the heart of growth. We combine our powerful foresight with this tangible know-how, technology, and scale to help you create a better, more transformative strategy from day one.
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