A Unique Partnership Fighting Cancer In The Middle East – A Model Replicable The World Over

Sao Paolo, Brazil – December 18, 2024 – Over the past 14 years, Dr. Bruno Ferrari has worked to democratize access to high-quality cancer care within his home nation of Brazil.

Today, Oncoclínicas&Co focuses on the entire oncology treatment journey, combining operational efficiency, humanized care, and high specialization. Its Brazil medical team includes more than 2,900 specialist physicians across 144 units in 40 cities, who have performed a combined 635,000 cancer treatments in 2023.

In 2019, a Saudi-sponsored report revealed that every oncologist surveyed identified cancer treatment shortages as a significant issue, urging national-level action to standardize the definition of cancer drug shortages.

Oncoclínicas’ rapid growth and medical expertise, combined with its partnership with the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, affiliated with the Harvard Medical School, were more than enough reasons to convince HRH Prince Mohammed K.A. Al Faisal, President of Al Faisaliah Group, that the Brazilian enterprise could help address the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (‘KSA’) growing need for advanced cancer care.

Dr. Ferrari proposed a partnership to establish new centers which will operate using the Oncoclinics brand in Saudi Arabia, replicating the successful Brazilian model of comprehensive cancer care. This collaboration will work with Al Faisaliah Group’s subsidiary, the ‘Advanced Drug Company for Pharmaceuticals’. Both partners will provide 50% of the up-front funds to build the first flagship center, with its revenues expected to fund a nationwide network expansion.

But let’s be clear – there is an urgency. Saudi Arabia is a nation of 35 million people, and cancer in is on the rise.

Saudi Arabia’s young and growing population, further increased by significant immigration, lacks a well-established oncology care network. While the country has made notable advances in healthcare infrastructure as part of its national vision to enhance citizen well-being, the oncology gap remains critical.

Al Faisaliah Group, with its strong track record across various industries, is well-positioned to address this need.

When the partnership was first announced in August, Prince Al Faisal, Chairman for the joint venture, stated that, “We are joining forces to improve cancer care. Our aim is to become the top private cancer treatment center for a region of over 300 million people.”

Dr. Ferrari echoed this optimism in a recent interview, noting that, “When we first visited Saudi Arabia nearly two years ago, we saw cancer care at a level similar to what we experienced in Brazil 15 years ago. Today, many Saudi cancer patients must go abroad for treatment, even though the nation has excellent physicians and high-quality hospitals”.

Dr. Ferrari added, “We immediately felt a welcoming attitude from the government, hospitals, and cancer patients — all eager for the high-quality cancer care, close to home, that Oncoclínicas&Co provides in Brazil. From the start, the government and regulators have worked in a very positive fashion to ensure that our joint venture will succeed”.

While this partnership represents Oncoclínicas&Co’s most ambitious step in the Middle East, it builds on the company’s growing international footprint.

Oncoclínicas owns Boston Lighthouse Innovation in Boston, a company specializing in bioinformatics based in Cambridge, U.S., and also holds shares in Medsir, a Spanish company dedicated to developing and managing clinical trials for independent cancer research. These initiatives have strengthened Oncoclínicas’ capabilities in innovation and patient care, providing a solid foundation for its expansion into Saudi Arabia and other regions.

“This is not our first step beyond Brazil,” Dr. Ferrari noted. “Our prior international initiatives have allowed us to develop the expertise and collaborative networks necessary to replicate our success globally. The Saudi partnership aligns perfectly with our strategy of expanding access to high-quality oncology care worldwide.”

While Saudi doctors, most trained in the U.S. or Europe, bring significant expertise, they have to-date lacked the facilities and collaborative networks necessary to deliver comprehensive oncology care.

“This cadre of physicians is ready to adopt our methodologies and share in our expertise,” Ferrari continued.

The partnership’s first step is a flagship outpatient center with more than 10,000 square meters in the capital city of Riyadh, set to open by June 2025. This facility will offer infusional treatments, diagnostics, genomic testing, and the complete outpatient treatment journey. Since 85%-90% of cancer treatments occur in outpatient settings, this model minimizes the need for hospital visits for chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

Following the Riyadh flagship’s opening, additional centers, including neighborhood centers, will be developed across Saudi Arabia. Oncoclínicas&Co will also provide a training program for physicians, nurses, and pharmacists, ensuring the network’s scalability and sustaintability.

Indeed not only are Saudi doctors more than capable of adapting to the Oncoclínicas&Co model, they, along with the Saudi nurses and clinical staff, also have years of experience working in the nation’s culturally sensitive health care environment. Moreover, as the growing enterprise will require additional staff at all levels, Oncoclnicas&Co intends to implement a robust medical career plan to attract and retain top talent across all levels of expertise, not only in Saudi Arabia but also throughout the Middle East-North Africa (MENA) region, serving a community of over 300 million people. This model prioritizes training, mentoring, and professional development, particularly benefiting younger physicians, while offering opportunities for career growth that extend beyond direct compensation.

The Saudi medical staff will also gain access to cutting-edge clinical trials, including more than 150 active trials and studies which Oncoclínicas&Co conducts in partnership with leading pharmaceutical companies. They additionally will have the opportunity to participate in small-group discussions with Oncoclínicas&Co and Dana Farber Cancer Institute specialists about individual cases that have posed specific challenges or offered new insights; and, in the process, these interactions will enable expertise-transfer opportunities to improve patient outcomes in future.

Dr. Ferrari described his initial meeting with Prince Al Faisal as transformative, concluding: “We believe that we are arriving in the right country, at the right moment, with the right partner; and that we are highly capable of brokering major transformation in cancer care for the Middle East-North Africa region”.

About Oncoclínicas&Co

Oncoclínicas&Co – the largest group dedicated to cancer treatment in Latin America – has a specialized, innovative model focused on the whole oncology treatment journey, combining operational efficiency, humanized care, and high specialization, through a medical team composed of 2,900 specialist physicians, mainly focused on oncology. Having its mission to democratize cancer treatment, it offers a complete system composed of integrated outpatient clinics and high-complexity cancer centers. Currently, the group owns 144 units across 40 Brazilian cities, allowing access to cancer treatment in all regions where it operates and following world-class quality standards.

Leveraging technology, precision medicine, and genomics, Oncoclínicas delivers effective results in cancer treatment, having performed approximately 635,000 treatments in 2023. It is an exclusive partner in Latin America of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, affiliated with Harvard Medical School. The group also owns Boston Lighthouse Innovation, a company specialized in bioinformatics, based in Cambridge, United States, and additionally holds shares in Medsir, a Spanish company dedicated to developing and managing clinical trials for independent cancer research.

Furthermore, Oncoclínicas has become part of the IDIVERSA portfolio, a recently launched index by B3, the Brazilian stock exchange, which highlights the performance of companies committed to gender and racial diversity.

For further information, visit www.grupooncoclinicas.com.

About Al Faisaliah Group

Al Faisaliah Group (AFG) is a privately held holding company headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, operating across the wider Middle East.

Founded in 1971, the group holds leading positions in multiple industries, including dairy, electronics, healthcare, and food services. The group is recognized across the region for its strongly held values, professional management, and decades-long strategic partnerships with leading local and global firms, including notably Sony, Danone, and Philips.

For further information, visit www.alfaisaliah.com.

Photo credit: Anna Tarazevich (Pexels.com)