Business Development in Healthcare - Nicolas Duhem | Ep. 9
Dr. Nicolas Duhem — Healthcare Business Development Expert
Dr. Nicolas Duhem on the business side of medicines: how pharma companies place their bets, why approval is not reimbursement, and what China and AI are about to change.
Key Takeaways
Research productivity is the bottleneck
It takes about a hundred compounds, and by current estimates around $2 billion, to get one drug approved. 12:14
Approval is not reimbursement
A drug can prove it is safe and effective and still fail commercially if payers will not cover it. Each country judges differently. 12:43
The US is the market to be in
It is about 60% of the world market, and he calls a physical presence in Boston or San Francisco critical. 26:17
China has become an innovator
Once the industry's factory, it now originates drugs and sells the Western rights to established companies. 37:58
Doctors will not be replaced
AI already reads scans accurately, and radiologists were not fired: they got time back for patients. 43:10
“For technology, any technology, the short-term impact is usually overestimated. The long-term impact is usually underestimated.”
Chapters
- 0:00Introduction1 min
- 0:55Strategy and business development2 min
- 2:58Why healthcare deals are different2 min
- 4:31Who makes the bets2 min
- 6:33How a consulting firm is built2 min
- 8:47Skills for healthcare consulting2 min
- 11:11The industry's two big problems2 min
- 13:28FDA versus reimbursement2 min
- 15:49Entering the US market3 min
- 18:55R&D timelines and cost7 min
- 25:30Why be present in the US2 min
- 27:39Career advice6 min
- 33:32Three forces shaping medicine4 min
- 37:04China's pharmaceutical innovation5 min
- 42:03Will AI replace doctors?4 min
Mentioned in This Episode
About this Guest
Dr. Nicolas Duhem
Healthcare Business Development Expert
Former McKinsey & Company consultant with a doctorate in pharmaceutical sciences, advising on R&D pipelines, FDA pathways, and US market entry for European healthcare companies.