OUTLINE PROGRAMME

Welcome by Professor Kishore MAHBUBANI

Chairman, NUS Medicine International Council (NIC)

Opening Address by NIC Chairman: Is the Asian century really coming?

The world today faces a huge contradiction. On the one hand, the data shows that power, especially economic power, is shifting to Asia. On the other hand, the established powers, especially in the trans-Atlantic alliance, refuse to acknowledge that a major transition in world history is happening. The Western powers continue to cling to old privileges, like the headships of the World Bank and the IMF. The US will also step up its efforts to stop the rise of China. So, will we witness an Asian century? And, if it comes, what will the shape and texture of such an Asian century be? Will Asian powers try to dominate the world? Or will they work with the existing world order? Will multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and IMF continue to be dominated by the West? In short, major questions have to be addressed as we try to understand the new world hurtling towards us.

Keynote by Mr Casey MACE: U.S. engagement with Singapore, the region, and the world

Deputy Chief of Mission, US Embassy in Singapore 

U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Casey Mace will discuss the Biden Administration’s relationship with Singapore as well as its approach to relations with East Asia and the World as the United States works with friends, allies, and partners to tackle shared challenges ranging from climate change to defending the territorial integrity of sovereign states.

Moderator: Professor Kishore MAHBUBANI, NIC Chairman

Disruptive tech showcase: “Sustainable, cost-effective and biodegradable materials to replace petroleum plastics”

by Mr Ryan ADOLPHSON, Chief Operating Officer, RWDC Industries, United States

The world is overwhelmed by plastic and plastic pollution causing significant negative impacts on human health and the environment. The traditional Three Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) are inadequate to address the problem and a fourth R Replace is needed. Products made with RWDC’s Solon™ PHA biopolymer resins feel and cost like plastic but biodegrade in the natural environment with no negative impacts on human health. Solon™ seamlessly replaces petrol-based plastic in products we use every day. RWDC produces PHA polymers and resins from renewable resources with the most scalable, efficient, and cost-effective process in the industry today.

Update on NUS Medicine by Professor Yap Seng CHONG

Dean, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine) 

Longevity panel 

Over the past 150 years, progress in medical care has allowed us to live longer but not necessarily healthier lives, opening a gap between lifespan (the total number of years we live) and healthspan (the years we live in good health). We’re now facing an ever-increasing problem of an ageing population that comes with both social and economic implications. Closing the gap between life expectancy and disease-free years should therefore be of utmost priority. Advancements in longevity research have skyrocketed over the past couple of decades, culminating in the elucidation of common molecular mechanisms of ageing that could now be used to develop safe and effective interventions aimed at extending healthspan. 

Panellists:

• “Healthy longevity for all: Democratising longevity by bridging the gap between science and business innovation”

by Dr Elisabeth ROIDER, Chief Scientific and Medical Officer and Partner, Maximon, Switzerland

Given that one of the major challenges that lies ahead is to translate this scientific innovation into products and services available to the wider public, Dr Roider will discuss the challenges of bringing science innovation to the market and why strategic investments in this sector have the potential to not only allow ageing populations to live healthier and more active lives but also provide a systemic relief from the economic burden associated with an ageing population.

• From sick-care to health-care with hyper personalised prevention

by Dr Rob KONRAD, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Biolytica, Switzerland

Traditional “Sick-Care” systems, focussed on costly disease management, are financially and ethically unsustainable, exacerbating healthcare inequalities. Preventive healthcare and longevity are becoming increasingly significant trends. The key to disease prevention and health optimisation is hyperpersonalised care. Dr Rob Konrad’s talk will highlight Biolytica’s revolutionary approach to health. The company’s experts employ cutting-edge technology and data analysis to help people enhance their well-being by decoding bodily information and crafting tailored health journeys, factoring in genomics, biomarkers, and daily activity patterns.

• “Data-driven longevity: Unlocking the power of usable health data”

by Dr Suhina SINGH, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Jonda Health, Singapore

Suhina will discuss the critical importance of data normalisation and interoperability to facilitate data-driven longevity.

Moderator: Professor Brian KENNEDY, Distinguished Professor in Biochemistry and Physiology, Director of the Healthy Longevity Translational Research Programme, and the Asian Centre for Reproductive Longevity and Equality, NUS Medicine.

“Russo-Ukrainian war: Limits of Western shock and awe economic sanctions”

by Professor Steven ROSEFIELDE, Professor of Economics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, United States (Hybrid participation)

The paper rigorously identifies the maximum theoretical impact of Western economic sanctions, and the mathematical conditions for softening the blow. Russian weathered sanctions easily and Professor Rosefielde will explain why 2023 will bring more of the same. Washington and Brussels know this, but are in a state of acute denial. Xi Jinping is sure to take note of the fact that sanctions from hell were ineffectual, and adjust his foreign policy accordingly. Professor Rosefielde will address policy consequences of draconian Western economic sanctions and other pertinent military economic issues during the discussion period.

Moderator: Professor Kishore MAHBUBANI, NIC Chairman

“Consumptionomics for the Asian Century: Managing within constraints”

by Mr Chandran NAIR, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Global Institute For Tomorrow (GIFT), Hong Kong

Mr Nair argues that 6 billion Asians in 2050 cannot and should not aspire to live Western lifestyles. The Western model of consumption-led economic growth will result in catastrophic outcomes at a time when resource constraints are only too apparent. Calling for bans on some forms of consumption, re-pricing of resources, and for the state to play the all-important role in promoting economic activity that is equitable and sustainable, Mr Nair advocates the search for new business models that do not thrive on promoting relentless consumption by under-pricing resources and externalising costs. Instead economies should be focussed on redefining prosperity so as to meet the majority’s needs in critical areas of food (safe, secure), water and sanitation, affordable housing, low carbon energy, basic healthcare and education.

Moderator: Mr Narinder SINGH, Co-Founder and Director, Avina Holdings

Lunch dialogue with Mr George YEO 

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Singapore

Moderator: Professor Kishore MAHBUBANI, NIC Chairman

2:00pm – 3:00pm

Global economic transformation

by Mr Mark CUTIS, Non-Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, CCHL

Disruptive tech showcase: “A non-invasive urine test for bladder cancer detection”

by Dr Kian Chung LEE, Chief Executive Officer, BioCheetah Pte Ltd, Singapore

According to GLOBOCAN cancer database 2020, bladder cancer is the sixth most common cancer worldwide among males, with an estimated 573,000 new cases in 2020 for both sexes. This is an increase of 33% new incidence cases compared to the 430,000 cases in 2012. Current standard of care in bladder cancer diagnosis is via the use of cystoscopy. Being an invasive diagnostic procedure, which requires local or general anaesthesia, there may be risks of infection, bleeding, perforation, or complications from the anaesthesia. As with most cancers, survival is greatly dependent upon the stage in which the cancer has been diagnosed. Various unmet clinical needs exist in bladder cancer diagnosis which prompts the development of new approaches. BioCheetah intends to fill the diagnostic gap by providing non-invasive diagnostic tests that are specific and sensitive towards bladder cancer detection.

“Global partnerships to accelerate global solutions”

by Mr Tobby SIMON, Chief Executive Officer, Synergia Foundation, Synergia Bio Sciences, India

The world is faced with healthcare, climate and inequality challenges. Synergia Bio Sciences will present advances in drug delivery including an innovative nano emulsion drug delivery platform designed for targeted drug delivery of any lyophilic drug. The platform has the potential to deliver a range of drugs including anti-psychotic, anti-emetics, anti-epileptics, anti-pyretic, oncology, vaccines and insulin. The platform has received 20 year patent in the US, Japan, Europe, and India.

Moderator: Dr Yvanka GILLIAM, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Clinical Research Advancement, Singapore

Cutting edge technology showcase

Panellists:

• “Harnessing Neoantigens: The Future of Cancer Immunotherapy”

by Dr Gloryn CHIA, Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, NUS

In recent years, immunotherapy has emerged as a promising approach in cancer treatment. One of the latest strategies involves treating cancers with cancer vaccines that increase recognition of tumours by immune cells. These vaccines are highly specific and have low off-target toxicity, which make them a very attractive option. This talk will focus on the development of cancer vaccines for treating solid tumours and discuss the challenges and opportunities for using these vaccines in cancer treatment.

• “The digital health landscape” 

by Dr Snehal PATEL, Managing Director, Saena Partners, Singapore

Dr Patel will be presenting an overview of the digital health market, the key technology disruptors (Chat GPT, etc.), and the supposed direction of these digital health innovations

• “Ending cancer as the world knows it through liquid biopsy” 

by Dr Min-Han TAN, Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director, Singapore

Asia is facing a $10 trillion cancer burden in the next 30 years (JAMA Oncology, 2023). President Biden has issued a Cancer Moonshot call in the US, with multi-cancer early detection (MCED) blood tests as a key path to halving cancer mortality. Lucence’s founding CEO Dr Tan Min-Han will discuss how Lucence is building an MCED to solve this worldwide cancer challenge.

Moderator: Professor Dean Ho, Provost’s Chair Professor; Director, The N.1 Institute for Health (N.1) and Director, The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM), NUS Medicine; Head, Department of Biomedical Engineering, NUS, Singapore