Three Purities Makes a Name, New Beauty Catches Strays

Whether it took effect in three days or cured patients in three days.

Three Purities Pharmaceutical became famous overnight.

Everyone who heard those four words began searching and asking around.

What listed pharmaceutical company was this Three Purities Pharmaceutical?

It had actually independently developed a new anti-cancer drug that took effect in three days.

It had to be an established listed pharmaceutical conglomerate with abundant capital, a formidable R&D background, and deep technical reserves, right?

They had to report on it immediately.

Even if they had to dig three feet into the ground, they needed to find out everything about it.

It had to be said that in the information age, news traveled fast.

Three Purities Pharmaceutical was soon investigated inside out.

However, everyone was stunned after seeing the relevant information.

What? It was a small pharmaceutical company established more than twenty years ago. It was old enough, sure, but it had never gone public.

It only had seventy-eight employees paying social insurance, most of whom were production workers.

It had invested heavily in building a pharmaceutical laboratory and had a small R&D team, but unfortunately, they all only had bachelor's degrees. There was not even a single master's degree holder among them. They were probably just there to do odd jobs.

Its revenue last year had only been a few tens of millions, and it produced nothing but the most common generic drugs: cold medicine, anti-inflammatory drugs, eye drops, cough syrup—the sort of everyday pharmacy medicines found everywhere.

It had merely been founded relatively early and was located in a small city, so it occupied a large industrial plot and had some factory production equipment. Adding in the laboratory and everything else, its assets might total around a hundred million.

Even among the country's more than four thousand pharmaceutical companies, such a miscellaneous little firm ranked near the very bottom of the middle and lower tiers.

And yet, this utterly unremarkable no-name company had developed a new anti-cancer drug that took effect in three days?

This was downright unbelievable.

Just as everyone's jaws hit the floor.

At a five-star Marriott hotel in downtown Sea City.

A grand press conference was underway in an opulent, magnificent conference hall.

A middle-aged man in a suit stood at the podium in the center. He was dignified and well-featured, with a square face and large ears. Even without anger, he exuded authority, every inch of him carrying the bearing of someone in power.

The seats below were packed with guests from major industry peers, suppliers, and media outlets.

The enormous screen behind him played one lofty corporate promotional image after another: spotless cleanrooms, professional elite R&D teams, annual revenues in the tens of billions, and close-up displays of the efficacy of various cutting-edge drugs.

A red banner bore a striking line of words: "New Beauty Group's Exclusive Launch Press Conference for Akilunsi Injection, the Nation's First New Anti-Cancer Drug"

The middle-aged man was Wu Shiji, chairman of Xinmei Group. Beside him stood a well-fed middle-aged woman, glowing with health as she recounted her cancer treatment.

"Everyone, I am Zhang Chunmei from Sea City. Last June, I was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma, and after treatment, it relapsed. I once fell into despair and even considered ending my life to avoid enduring this endless pain."

"However, when I heard that CAR-T cell therapy had been approved domestically, I felt hope again."

"Three months ago, I underwent leukapheresis at Haishi Ruiji Hospital, and one month later, I was injected with Akilunsi Injection developed by Xinmei Group."

"At the end of last month, a PET-CT scan showed that there were temporarily no Cancer Cells left in my body. My symptoms were also completely relieved. I fully regained my health and was discharged three days ago."

"Thank you, Xinmei Group. Thank you, Ruiji Hospital. Thank you, General Manager Wu. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the successful launch of this new drug."

The middle-aged woman was overjoyed and overcome with emotion, shedding tears of gratitude several times as she spoke.

Her rosy complexion, well-fed figure, thick black hair, and healthy, booming voice all strongly attested to this miraculous efficacy.

The entire hall erupted in applause and cheers, delighted that she had defeated cancer.

Xinmei Chairman Wu Shiji then spoke with a glowing face and solemnly introduced his company's product.

"As everyone knows, Akilunsi Injection is an autologous immune cell injection. It is prepared from autologous anti-human CD19 chimeric antigen receptor T cells, or CAR-T cells, genetically modified by a retroviral vector carrying the CD19CAR gene."

"Recently, the official website of the National Drug Administration Bureau released an announcement approving Akilunsi Injection for sale. The announcement stated that this drug was China's first approved cell therapy product, intended for adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after receiving second-line or later systemic treatment."

"To date, apart from the Akilunsi Injection released by our company, no other CAR-T cell therapy product has been approved for sale in China. It can be called the nation's first and exclusive new anti-cancer drug."

"Xinmei Group combines independent R&D with technology transfer, dedicating itself to the industrialization and standardization of tumor immune cell therapy technology for the benefit of patients both at home and abroad."

Thunderous applause immediately rang through the entire hall.

Soon, it was time for questions from the media.

A sharp question was quickly raised.

"As far as I know, a single bag of Akilunsi Injection costs an astronomical one million yuan, for approximately sixty-eight milliliters. Including other supporting treatment costs, the total price may approach two million yuan."

"Chairman Wu, may I ask why this drug is so expensive?"

"Was your company's original intention in developing this drug to serve only the wealthy?"

"Not only are poor people shut out from this drug, but even ordinary people would have to lose everything to use it. What positive significance does such an astronomically priced drug have? Does it violate the core socialist values?"

One soul-searching question after another was thrown out. The other industry peers all broke into a sweat and were thankful that they were not the ones facing this thorny issue.

Yet Chairman Wu seemed to have prepared for it long ago. With a confident, composed expression, he began speaking eloquently.

"That is an excellent question. As for why Akilunsi Injection is so expensive, the main reason is that it cannot be mass-produced. Each patient requires individualized treatment, and the treatment process is also extremely complicated, so the costs are correspondingly very high."

"Moreover, this product is the country's first new anti-cancer drug and currently has no domestic equivalent. In addition, Xinmei has invested more than eight hundred million yuan cumulatively in its R&D, which is also a major reason for the product's high end price."

"Every innovative technology goes through a process of falling costs, including the enormous R&D investment in the early stages. Therefore, our preliminary domestic pricing for CAR-T is half that of overseas markets."

"In the future, we will also strive to reduce the cost burden of CAR-T. At present, CAR-T may still be beyond the means of ordinary people, but we firmly believe that as time passes, its price will eventually fall to a level patients can afford."

His remarks were very appropriate and thoroughly explained why the sky-high-priced anti-cancer injection was so expensive.

After hearing that the cumulative R&D investment exceeded eight hundred million, the media's expressions eased considerably.

Another reporter asked a question.

"Since the price is so high, does Akilunsi Injection plan to enter the national medical insurance program? If it could be included, the price could be reduced as much as possible and cancer patients could benefit sooner."

General Manager Wu revealed a meaningful smile.

"At present, this product cannot immediately enter medical insurance. We still need to explore more multi-party cooperation, such as cooperation with commercial insurance. With commercial insurance coverage, I believe the burden on the payment side will be eased."

Upon hearing these high-sounding words, all the industry peers present exchanged knowing smiles.

There was no way they would cut prices, and there was no way they would enter medical insurance. Who did not know how low medical insurance procurement prices were? They could bargain pharmaceutical salespeople to tears.

Why did capitalists develop new drugs? To make money, of course. Was it really to cure cancer and save all humanity?

The nation's exclusive, the first of its kind, a new anti-cancer drug, with eight hundred million in R&D investment—once it hit the market, shouldn't they make a killing, earn more from the rich, and focus on recouping their costs first? Who would be crazy enough to lower the price the moment it launched?

Poor people and ordinary people who could not afford two million in treatment costs—what kind of target customers were they? Did they deserve to use a high-end new anti-cancer drug?

If they developed drugs for poor people all the time, companies would be drinking the northwest wind long ago. Heh heh.

Naturally, the inner thoughts of the pharmaceutical industry peers were not something outsiders could know.

And after hearing General Manager Wu's words, the media could not find any fault with them. His answer was indeed skillful and watertight; no one could pick out an error.

However, a discordant voice still rose from the scene.

"General Manager Wu, although New Beauty's drug is the first anti-cancer drug to launch, it is not exclusively available in China. In fact, a pharmaceutical company called Three Purities Pharmaceutical has also developed a Broad-Spectrum Anti-Cancer Drug."

"It is said that Three Purities Pharmaceutical's anti-cancer drug takes effect in three days, and patients can return to normal immediately after taking it for three days."

"General Manager Wu, what are your thoughts on this?"

The veins on General Manager Wu's forehead instantly bulged. The word "absurd" nearly flew out of his mouth.

Are you fucking here to toy with me? Bragging about a miracle anti-cancer drug that takes effect in three days in front of pharmaceutical professionals?

Yet the name "Three Purities Pharmaceutical" sounded strangely familiar.

It can't be the company I'm thinking of, can it?

Absolutely not! Impossible!

General Manager Wu barely managed to control his emotions and put on an amiable smile.

"Friends from the media, I know you like to exaggerate somewhat when reporting news, but even so, a miracle anti-cancer drug that takes effect in three days is simply inconceivable."

"If any industry peer has developed such a miraculous new drug, I would certainly congratulate them and personally visit them to learn from them."

"Hahaha, General Manager Wu is right."

The industry peers present also burst into laughter.

The reporter who had asked the question appeared to be a newcomer. Seeing everyone look at him as if he were an idiot, his face immediately reddened, and he could not refute them for a moment.

After all, everyone present was a pharmaceutical professional. As an outsider, he truly had no solid evidence to offer.

He could only leave awkwardly.

The press conference ended amid a festive and peaceful atmosphere.

An hour later, General Manager Wu appeared in the headquarters building on the Bund in Sea City.

He looked out at the brilliantly lit river.

His smile had vanished, and his face was as dark as water.

A young man in a crisp suit quietly entered and reported respectfully.

"General Manager Wu, I just checked. The matter of the anti-cancer drug taking effect in three days is real."

"It is indeed the drug from that Three Purities Pharmaceutical you know. It is currently undergoing a Phase III Clinical Trial in Kun City."

"This is the patient trial video that has been spreading wildly online. The results are indeed astonishing."

General Manager Wu took the tablet from his assistant and carefully watched the video playing on it, replaying it several times.

After watching it, he placed the tablet on the broad desk before him, furrowing his brow deeply as though lost in thought.

The assistant hesitated before adding, "There is one more matter. The trending topic you previously asked me to buy for the launch of Akilunsi Injection unfortunately collided with the trending topic for Three Purities Pharmaceutical's new drug."

The assistant lowered his head in terror. "The internet is in an uproar now. All the netizens are furiously cursing New Beauty, saying you are too black-hearted and utterly money-mad."

"Ah!!!"

General Manager Wu's face turned livid. With a furious roar, he hurled the tablet in his hand with all his strength.

After finishing 2,600 words tonight, I realized there were only three minutes left until midnight, so I hurriedly posted it. After posting, I kept writing until 3,300 words before finishing the plot and posting again. My back and waist immediately started aching T_T. Time to wash up and sleep. Tomorrow, I'll recharge and write properly to serve you dear readers.