At Astellas, we leverage digital technology to provide personalized and optimized information that meets our aims of improving pathologies and healthcare quality and offering health economic value . To this end, we have entered into a strategic alliance with Welldoc®, Inc. to develop Digital Therapeutics (DTx) for addressing specific therapeutic areas globally.
Welldoc's diabetes treatment app, BlueStar®*, received its first clearance as a medical device from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2010, and the company continues to broaden it’s reach in the DTx space, building a wealth of experience and knowledge in this area. Astellas' strengths in the pharmaceutical business mean we have the capabilities to generate evidence and deliver it in an optimal form. Therefore, by leveraging both companies' strengths, we can leverage the power of DTx to solve the wide-ranging issues facing healthcare today.
Astellas and Welldoc are jointly developing and commercializing BlueStar in Japan and certain other Asian markets. We are also collaborating to broaden the adoption of BlueStar in the U.S. market. Utilizing Welldoc's platform as a starting point, the two companies work together to modify the algorithms and functions for each country to design products that have the potential to improve pathologies and healthcare quality. We will also develop business models tailored to each region.
Astellas is also looking at developing new DTx by combining Welldoc's platform with hardware.
Press Release
*BlueStar Rx/OTC is an FDA-cleared medical device, intended for use by healthcare providers and their adult patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. For full labeling information, visit www.welldoc.com.