Health tech startups in Japan: A commentary

The Japanese aging population is on a rise. The increase in the number of patients and decrease of medical staff led to a significant overall growth of medical care expenditures in Japan, expected to reach €420 Billion by 2025. The government is committed to initiating new healthcare measures, meant to scale back expenditure and improve care standards, by revising the policy and introducing new programmes, like the Integrated Community Care System (will be established to comprehensively ensure the provision of health care, nursing care, prevention, housing, and livelihood support. By this, the elderly could live the rest of their lives in their own ways in environments familiar to them, even if they become heavily in need for long-term care)  and Japan Health Care Vision (a healthcare system built for the next 20 years that contributes to financial stability).

Besides major system changes, the government is additionally watching new technologies to revolutionise the healthcare industry. Japan has several weak areas where it’s highly reliant on imports, like vascular stents and artificial joints. In fact, Japan imports 49% of all medical devices utilized in the market, so Japan is very conducive for foreign companies offering medical technologies.

 

Three main clusters regrouping different market issues and wishes are often identified. The following are only a couple of samples of attractive opportunities for exporters.

Patients: New diseases created by aging, but also a change of lifestyle, demand introduction of IoT and/or robotics solutions reception, wearable devices and technologies that help to manage chronic diseases, as well as prevent their onset. Patient awareness must be increased through better access to information and improvement of health literacy.

Medical professionals: Solutions like telemedicine, remote image diagnosis and affordable devices to conduct telepathology are needed to compensate the chronic lack of medical specialists in rural areas. Watch service devices, communication tools for isolated patients, wireless medical prescriptions are in demand thanks to rising needs within the field of home medical care.

Introduction of Big Data to enhance care management and conduct predictive analysis also as genomics are required to supply better care and preventive treatment. Cloud computing solutions should be implemented to enhance inter-professional collaboration and efficiency, within and between hospitals.

Hospital administrators: Administrators are faced with a good range of issues, like poor knowledge and skills regarding securing comprehensive healthcare data, a scarcity of coordination within and out of doors institutions due to poor system interoperability and communication, lack of efficiency and excessive costs thanks to both low digitization and digitalization, or poor stock management of supplies and devices. All of these factors are compounded by a lack of IT literacy at management level.

Solutions which will guarantee patient data security and privacy, tools using Big Data, collaborative tools, claim and human resource management tools, but also IT training programs for the medical field are needed.

Some famous Healthtech startups in Japan

Quantum Biosystems

Funding raised so far: $24.3M

Quantum Biosystems is developing single-molecule electrical sequencing of DNA and applies quantum physics to the sector of genome sequencing. Quantum Biosystems methodology doesn’t use reagents, proteins and other materials that make genome sequencing an upscale affair. Its sequencers are nano chips that are essentially silicon semiconductor chips therein they will be mass produced.

Cyfuse Biomedical

Funding raised so far: $12M

We contribute to significant advances in medical treatments through our revolutionary 3D tissue-engineering technology. We successfully developed the Bio 3D Printer, Regenova. It is a state-of-the-art robotic system that permits fully automated fabrication of three-dimensional artificial tissues/organs from living cells.

Hacarus

Funding raised so far: $3.7M

Hacarus’ AI algorithms are tailored for medical studies, medical treatment analysis, and drug research. Data used for these use cases can range from basic health parameters, like vital sign , pulse , or activity level, to CT brain scan images.