As a marketing professional in the healthcare industry, you need to accurately identify the criteria that define your specific target population in order to size your market and build your strategy. You also need to be aware of the individuals and organizations who shape the patient journey, any challenges specific to disease management and who the choice drivers are. Identifying the appropriate stakeholders and staying up to date on their roles and characteristics is therefore crucial. This post explores the different stakeholder groups in this rapidly evolving market.

Onco-Hematology Medical Professionals

Defining and mapping the onco-hematology universe is complex:

• Surprisingly, hemato-oncologist training differs greatly from one country to another. In some countries, such as Germany, Ireland, Iceland and Albania, it is a real specialty. In other countries, training is integrated into general training, or into an oncology diploma, and is not always compulsory as is the case in Greece.
• In most countries, there is neither an exact description of the population of hemato- oncologists nor baseline data to provide a precise description of these practitioners available, yet this information is necessary to define and size this specific market.
• As with the solid tumor oncologists, the practice of hemato-oncologists may differ greatly from one country to another. For example, the proportion of hemato-oncologists practicing in private practice is high in Germany when compared to France.
• Within the domain of hemato-oncology, Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) play a key role in influencing patient care treatment algorithms, for example. In some cases, highly homogenous practices in their “area” of influence can be observed.
• Digital Opinion Leaders (DOLs) in hemato-oncology are also important stakeholders in the market due to the significant influence they exert within their online communities.

Professional Associations

Professional associations aim to promote the sharing of knowledge, best practice and experiences in the field of onco-hematology for areas including research, patient care, and training. They are key stakeholders in the market.

Here are some key professional associations to note:

• International Society of Hematology (ISH) – www.ishworld.org
• American Society of Hematology (ASH) – USA – www.hematology.org
• The Canadian Hematology Society – Canada – www.canadianhematologysociety.org
• The European Hematology Association (EHA) – Europe – www.ehaweb.org
• Asia-Pacific Hematology Consortium (APHCON) – Asia – www.aphcon.org
• Société Française d’Hématologie (SFH) – France – sfh.hematologie.net

Patient Associations

Each blood cancer disease has a wide range of linked patient associations that are active stakeholders. Patient associations within this therapeutic area:

• Assist and inform patients and their families throughout care pathways and in managing daily life
• Develop partnerships
• Act as interlocutors with health authorities
• Support research and share recent news

Example patient associations:

• The European Hematology Association (EHA) – Europe – www.ehaweb.org/ European Hematology Association
• MDS Alliance – Europe – https://www.mds-alliance.org/member-organizations/the global MDS patient network
• AF3M – France – https://www.af3m.org
• France Lymphome Espoir – France – https://www.francelymphomeespoir.fr

Additional links are listed here.

Pharmaceutical and Biotech Companies

The capabilities of biotechnologies such as cell therapies, gene therapies, and immunotherapies are rapidly improving, and leading pharmaceutical companies are eager to integrate them. Novartis just acquired American gene therapy specialist AveXis. Merck, Roche and Astra Zeneca are significantly investing in immunotherapy, while Bayer has created BlueRock Therapeutics for treatments based on stem cells. Mergers are also accelerating in immunotherapy start-ups: Gilead Sciences just acquired Kite Pharma and Celgene procured Juno Therapeutics. Big pharma aside, it is also important to follow young biotechnology companies.

Example pharmaceutical companies:

• Abbvie – USA – www.abbvie.com
• Amgen – USA – www.amgen.com
• Biogen IDEC – USA – www.biogen.com
• Bristol-Myers-Squibb – USA – www.bms.com
• Celgene – USA – www.celgene.com
• CSL Behring – USA – www.cslbehring.com
• Eisai – Japon – www.eisai.com
• Gilead Sciences – USA www.gilead.com
• Johnson and Johnson – USA – www.jnj.com
• Merck – Germany – www.merckgroup.com
• Morphosys – Germany – www.morphosys.com
• MSD – USA – www.msd.com
• Novartis – Switzerland – www.novartis.com
• Pfizer – USA – www.pfizer.com
• Roche/Genentech – Switzerland – www.roche.com
• Servier – France – www.servier.com
• Takeda – Japan – www.takeda.com