Cannon Fodder Is King [Quick Transmigration]

Chapter 26

　　Meng Zezhi dared to speak in such a tone because, bluntly speaking, there are roughly 37 million AIDS patients worldwide, and that's just the official data.

Before this, the universally accepted method for treating AIDS was "cocktail therapy,". The so-called cocktail therapy was actually the antiviral treatment. This method combines three antiviral drugs in a manner similar to mixing a cocktail in Western countries, aiming to prevent the replication of the HIV virus and prevent the development of drug-resistant strains.

However, the effectiveness of "cocktail therapy" is not 100%. It requires patients to take medication for a long-term and cannot be cured permanently. Additionally, long-term use of these drugs can lead to adverse effects such as lipid malnutrition, abnormal accumulation of fat in the abdomen and back, abnormal increase of blood lipid concentration, with the most severe being liver failure and diabetes.

Industry data shows that in 2017, the total sales of antiretroviral drugs amounted to $27 billion. This is despite the fact that in some developing countries, such as India, (which has the highest number of AIDS patients in Asia with an official count of 5.7 million AIDS patients), there are instances of violations of patent laws, rampant copying of original drugs, and market interventions (including seeking financial support and subsidies for drug manufacturers).

This is primarily due to the fact that antiretroviral drugs are scarce commodities whose prices are market-controlled. Without intervention, they would undoubtedly exceed the affordability of African countries, given that Africa is a hotspot for AIDS.

Let's not forget, this $27 billion is just the sales figure for the year 2017 alone. If we consider it over 10 or 20 years... it's a figure that an ordinary person can only look up to.

　　In general, the profit margin for ordinary goods usually doesn't exceed 50%. However, in the pharmaceutical industry, take the example of commonly used drugs like 2 milliliters of 20 milligrams Naphazoline Hydrochloride Injection. The factory price is 0.32 yuan per vial, the bid price is 18.49 yuan, and the hospital retail price is 21.26 yuan. This means the intermediate profit margin reaches a staggering 6500%.

And this isn't an exception.

In the market for scarce medications, this figure can double again.

Of course, we can't make absolute statements because the more scarce the drug, the higher the upfront investment, including equipment, factory buildings, and especially research and development costs.

Just with antiretroviral drugs that can prevent viral replication, the profits are already this high. So, what about the market prospects for a specific drug that can cure AIDS?

Meng Zezhi's preliminary estimate was that if produced in quantity, a set of four treatment courses of liquid medicine shouldn't cost more than 3,000 RMB.

From a capitalist perspective, then, as the only drug in the world so far capable of treating AIDS, a set of liquid medicine could easily be sold for $100,000.

With 37 million AIDS patients worldwide, even if only 20% of them could afford treatment, that's a profit of $700 billion.

Keep in mind, Bill Gates' net worth is only $86 billion.

As long as there's no AIDS vaccine developed, would the country and social welfare organizations dare to neglect the lives of the remaining 80% of AIDS patients?

It may sound heartless, but who dares to say it isn't the truth?

As Marx once said: "If there's 100% profit, capitalists will take risks; if there's 200% profit, capitalists will disregard the law; if there's 300% profit, then capitalists will trample on everything in the world!"