Gilead Sciences is a trailblazing biopharmaceutical company with a longstanding leadership position in virology, including HIV, viral hepatitis, and emerging infectious diseases. In recent years, the company has expanded oncology into a core pillar of its global strategy. In Taiwan, this evolution builds on Gilead’s established foundation while extending into increasingly complex treatment areas that demand new approaches and stronger coordination across the healthcare system.

In oncology — particularly in advanced cancers — treatment is rarely linear. Patients often move through multiple lines of therapy over time, requiring coordination across specialties and institutions. This inherent complexity shapes not only how new therapies are developed, but also how they are introduced and delivered in real-world clinical practice.

“We don’t come up with ‘me-too’ products,” says Cathy Su, General Manager of Gilead Taiwan, Hong Kong/Macau, and Singapore. “Every product we bring forward is intended to fulfill a critical unmet medical need.”

That focus has guided Gilead’s strategic investments in advanced platforms such as cell therapy and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), building on its expertise in complex, lifethreatening diseases and longterm commitments in translational science. In areas such as metastatic breast cancer — where treatment options have historically been limited — these approaches are beginning to reshape how the disease is managed across both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.

In Taiwan, these capabilities are already translating into tangible patient benefits. Therapies targeting metastatic triplenegative breast cancer have reached patients unusually quickly, supported by a policy environment responsive to clinical need. In one case, reimbursement pricing — opening the path to market entry — was secured within eight months of submission, significantly accelerating patient access.

“I’ve been very impressed by how much the government puts patients first,” Su says. “There is a clear desire not only to meet basic healthcare needs, but to ensure that innovative treatments are available to patients in Taiwan.”

Even with this level of preparation and responsiveness, access to innovation is not uniform. The cost of advanced therapies and the time required to establish reimbursement policy can still delay access for some patients.

Addressing these gaps requires more than regulatory approval. Gilead Taiwan works closely with government agencies, healthcare providers, and patient organizations to rethink how treatments are introduced, understood, and delivered in practice. These efforts shape both access and how patients and clinicians navigate complex treatment decisions over time. “We are working with multiple stakeholders to ensure that we serve patients better,” Su says.

Patient centricity, however, extends beyond medicines alone. Particularly in metastatic breast cancer, patient needs often go beyond treatment, encompassing disease understanding, emotional support, and longterm navigation of care. Gilead has supported initiatives developed with patient organizations to help patients and families better understand the disease and manage the treatment journey more effectively.

Gilead strengthened its oncology capabilities through the acquisition of Kite Pharma in 2017, establishing a leadership position in cell therapy. Cell therapy involves collecting a patient’s immune cells, modifying them outside the body, and reinfusing them to target disease—an approach with curative intent for eligible patients but requires tightly coordinated processes across multiple stages.

“It’s not just about delivering a product,” says Diego Santoro, Kite’s General Manager and Head of the International Region. “The entire ecosystem needs to be ready — from how cells are collected and engineered to how patients are treated and monitored.”

Delivering these therapies depends on hospitals having the right infrastructure, clinicians being trained in new protocols, and regulatory systems accommodating processes that differ from traditional treatment models. Gilead has worked with treatment centers and other stakeholders to support this readiness, particularly as new therapeutic modalities continue to emerge.

Both Su and Santoro point to crossstakeholder coordination as a determining factor in how effectively innovation can be translated into patient outcomes. While Taiwan’s healthcare system demonstrates a strong willingness to adopt new therapies, further alignment could help reduce variability in access and ensure more consistent implementation across institutions.

Gilead’s approach is grounded in a longterm commitment to advancing innovation and improving patient outcomes. “Everyone shares the same goal of improving outcomes,” Santoro says. “The opportunity is to work even more closely together to make that happen faster and more efficiently.”