What is the future of biopharma innovation in North Carolina and beyond?

Recent federal funding cuts were top of mind during a blockbuster panel discussion, “The Future of BioPharma Innovation,” co-hosted by Eshelman Innovation and the UNC School of Law’s Institute for Innovation on Monday, March 17.

“It’s often cited that [the United States] may be as important to biomedical research as the next 10 countries put together,” said panelist Kathleen Sebelius (seen above, right), who served in President Obama’s cabinet as Health and Human Services Secretary.

A big reason why, she said, is investment by the National Institutes of Health, which funds some 300,000 scientists at 2,500 research institutions, including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Cuts to the NIH’s $48 billion could reduce the breakthroughs that feed the drug and device pipeline.

“Those dollars are so important because they provide academics with a free rein to go out and look for novel, interesting observations in the labs that they can convert into commercial opportunities,” said Larry Robbins ’74 (JD/MBA ’79), founding partner of Wyrick Robbins, a law firm that has, for decades, helped biomedical researchers and startup companies commercialize their innovations.

Representing the opposite end of the innovation spectrum from Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) was Patrik Jonsson (above left), executive vice president and president of Lilly Cardiometabolic Health and Lilly USA. Jonsson said Lilly has committed more than $4 billion to new manufacturing facilities in North Carolina and will invest another $27 billion in the U.S. over the next five years. 

In terms of innovation, Jonsson said, Lilly invests 25% of its revenue back into R&D, rather than prioritizing shareholder dividends and stock buybacks. Two years ago, Lilly launched LillyDirect, a direct-to-consumer digital platform intended, he said, to “remove the friction” patients experience while navigating the frustrations of the U.S. healthcare system.

“Every day we have close to 3,500 new patients signing up,” he said. “More than 90% of those who are interacting with us on a daily basis are saying that this was an excellent experience.”

Promoting innovation

More than 230 attendees — including biopharma executives, University deans, venture capitalists and pharmacy and law students — packed the Carolina Inn’s Hill Ballroom to hear the panelists’ take on the impact of artificial intelligence, the promises and challenges around personalized medicine, the current venture capital investment climate and more, especially in relation to North Carolina’s Research Triangle, a leading hub of innovation and industry.

The law school’s Institute for Innovation strives, among other goals, to offer programs and resources to North Carolina’s entrepreneurial community. “Lawyers have a seat at pretty much every table, so it’s incumbent upon us to collaborate with schools and units across campus to discuss relevant and impactful topics,” said Institute for Innovation Executive Director Aaron Gard.

Eshelman Innovation was the perfect partner. “Eshelman Innovation is a translational institute, taking novel therapeutics and digital health solutions and getting them off campus,” said John Bamforth, executive director of Eshelman Innovation, part of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, the country’s number one pharmacy school.

Rounding out the panel were Dr. Sue Mahony, independent board member and former president of Lilly Oncology, and Dr. Norman “Ned” Sharpless, Professor of Cancer Policy and Innovation at the UNC School of Medicine and managing director of Jupiter BioVentures. 

Opportunities and challenges

Asked about the impact of AI on drug development, Mahony said: “At a minimum, we’re going to see AI streamlining things, reducing time, reducing the cost of R&D. The Holy Grail is: Can they actually make these products more successful in the clinic?” Noting that 90% of drug candidates fail, she added that “if AI can improve the success rate, then you truly are transforming the industry.”

“There is a sense of great, great potential, but how do you make sure these products are safe and useful?” asked Sharpless, who served as acting Food and Drug Administration commissioner in 2019 and was director of the National Cancer Institute from 2017 to 2022.

Hospitals across the country, for instance, are starting to use AI-enabled clinical-decision support tools that crunch electronic health record data. AI might determine an ICU patient, say, is likely to have sepsis within 12 hours and alert the patient’s doctors.

“Nobody knows how these things work. They’re a black box, they’re non-explainable AI, and the FDA has decided that they’re probably medical devices and we should not use them in an unregulated way,” Sharpless said. “It’s fascinating but also a little frightening to see what’s going to happen.”

A less controversial but also potentially transformative technology is telehealth, said Robbins. “We see consolidation of many hospital systems and the loss of the systems in the rural areas. The use of telehealth in those areas where the less privileged don’t have access to local facilities … is important.”

Bamforth asked each panelist to pick one promising innovation they’re tracking over the next decade or two. Robbins said he anticipates an era of cures rather than treatment — of improved quality of life rather than simply managing conditions. The others agreed, naming specific approaches that might result in cures.

Sebelius said she is excited about work by Humacyte, a Triangle company whose board she chairs, to create a lab-engineered pancreas for curing diabetes. Jonsson pointed to the potentially “game-changing” gene therapy being done by Lilly that restored hearing in two boys with genetic hearing loss. Mahony, too, sees great potential for gene therapies, especially CAR-T cells for treating cancers. Sharpless is excited about bespoke medicines — not simply precision medicine but literally personalized medicine designed for specific individuals.

None of that work will be easy to bring to patients. The challenges will be great. 

“We talked a lot about the challenges,” said Bamforth, who spent 30 years at Lilly before taking the helm at Eshelman Innovation. “To the young talent in the room who are looking at the [biopharma] industry … the reality is this is a remarkable industry with remarkable opportunities for a career.”