■Samsung Seoul Hospital and Samsung Electronics announced on the 4th that they have published a white paper on 'Medical radiation optimization through S-AEC: Clinical applications within abdominal imaging.' S-AEC automatically detects areas of the human body where dose adjustment is needed in Samsung Electronics' portable digital X-ray device and administers a dose optimized for the patient's body type. It helps to minimize the patient’s radiation dose and obtain images of uniform quality even in portable environments. This white paper summarizes the results of a study conducted on 421 patients. The study found that the S-AEC group had improved consistency in image quality, while the radiation dose received by patients was reduced by up to 44%. It was confirmed that the image quality of individual organs, including the liver, kidneys, and intestines, was maintained. Jang Woo-young, head of the digital X-ray business team at Samsung Electronics, noted, 'We enhanced patient safety by implementing the S-AEC function in portable digital X-ray imaging.'
■HANALL BIOPHARMA announced on the 4th that its autoimmune disease treatment candidate 'Batoclimab (HL161BKN)' has received orphan drug designation from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for thyroid eye disease. Orphan drugs are essential for the treatment and prevention of rare diseases. Once designated as an orphan drug, a company is granted exclusivity for up to 10 years from the marketing approval date and receives various benefits, including tax incentives. Batoclimab is an antibody drug that works by removing the factors that cause autoimmune diseases. HANALL BIOPHARMA is developing Batoclimab as a treatment for various autoimmune diseases, including myasthenia gravis, thyroid eye disease, and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, in collaboration with Immunovant.
■KyungDong Pharm announced on the 4th that it has newly created an emblem to commemorate its 50th anniversary. KyungDong Pharm has designed the emblem inspired by the theme 'Infinite KD,' reflecting its passion for moving towards a century-long corporation based on 50 years of management philosophy. The emblem incorporates the colors used in the existing KyungDong Pharm logo, symbolizing its aspirations to transition into a century-long corporation. KyungDong Pharm stated that having contributed to the health and happiness of humanity over the past 50 years, it will continue to challenge innovation and change based on tradition and values.
■DeepBio, an AI-based digital pathology corporation, announced on the 4th that it will present its latest research results at the 114th Annual Meeting of the U.S. and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP) to be held from the 22nd to the 27th at the Boston Convention Center. DeepBio will present research results related to the 'Immunohistochemistry (IHC) Solution' being applied in the development and clinical trials of ABION's new drugs, and AI-based pathological diagnosis research results for various types of cancer, including prostate, breast, and lung cancers. Kim Sun-woo, CEO of DeepBio, said, 'We are pleased to present our latest research results at USCAP 2025,' and added, 'We will contribute to enhancing diagnostic precision by applying AI to pathology and improving patient prognosis predictions across various cancer types.'
■The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 4th that it has approved a partial amendment to the enforcement decree of the 'Act on the Relief of Medical Accident Victims and Medical Dispute Mediation' at the State Council meeting. With this amendment, the government has raised the compensation limit for unavoidable delivery accidents from the previous 30 million won to 300 million won. The criteria for cases eligible for simple mediation in medical disputes have been relaxed from 5 million won to 10 million won, promoting the activation of dispute mediation. Simple mediation for medical disputes is a system that simplifies the procedures for dealing with small claims to speed up processing times. Additionally, the burden amount for the medical accident damage compensation guarantee system will be calculated and imposed based on the status of medical disputes over the last five years and the usage records of the guarantee system. The detailed text of the amendment can be found on the Ministry of Health and Welfare and National Law Information Center websites.