As ophthalmology enters a new era shaped by aging populations, childhood myopia and medical advances, the role of healthcare companies is evolving. For Marianthi Psaha, President and Head of EMEA and International Pricing, Market Access and Public Affairs at Santen, success will depend not only on scientific innovation but also on how we support early diagnosis, intervene sooner, and improve access to care. She discusses why EMEA is becoming a strategic engine for Santen, how partnerships are accelerating progress, and why the next chapter of eye health will be defined by partnerships and a shared approach to access as much as new medicines.
Ophthalmology is evolving rapidly. What makes this such a pivotal moment for eye health, and for Santen?
Few areas of healthcare are changing as rapidly as ophthalmology. Scientific advances are transforming how we diagnose and manage disease, digital technologies and artificial intelligence are opening new possibilities for earlier detection, and our understanding of prevention has progressed significantly. At the same time, eye conditions affect people across every stage of life, and the disease burden across EMEA is growing. An aging population, combined with modern lifestyle factors like increased screen time, is driving higher prevalence, from childhood myopia to age-related conditions in elderly adults.
This means that, as a pharmaceutical provider, we have an even greater responsibility to support patients. Healthcare systems are no longer asking only how we treat disease; they are asking how we prevent avoidable vision loss, intervene earlier, and deliver better outcomes for more patients.
For Santen, that evolution feels very natural. For more than 135 years, we have focused exclusively on ophthalmology. That singular focus has allowed us to build deep scientific expertise, long-term relationships with the ophthalmic community, and a clear understanding of patients’ needs.
Our goal today extends beyond developing innovative medicines. We want to become a long-term trusted partner for the future of eye health by supporting earlier intervention, strengthening clinical practice, contributing to evidence generation, and working with partners to improve access to care. Scientific innovation remains fundamental, but it creates real value only when it reaches patients and becomes part of everyday clinical practice.
Childhood myopia has become one of Santen’s strategic priorities. Why does it matter so much?
Childhood myopia is one of the most important shifts in eye health today.
For decades, eye care largely focused on correcting vision. Today, we know that managing myopia early can help reduce the risk of sight-threatening complications later in life. That changes both the clinical conversation and the public health conversation.
The approval of the first pharmacological treatment for childhood myopia in the European Union last year represents an important step forward, providing ophthalmologists with a new evidence-based option for managing progressive myopia. One year after the first launch in Germany, we are already providing the new solution in 8 countries and expanding access further across EMEA.
While innovation has created new opportunities to manage myopia progression, treatment alone is not enough. Earlier diagnosis, regular eye examinations, healthy visual habits, increased time outdoors and greater awareness among parents, educators and healthcare professionals all play an important role.
This is exactly where partnerships become essential.
Santen works with organizations including the International Myopia Institute, IAPB, Retina International and the European Myopia Society, to name a few, because no single organization can drive this change alone.
For example, together with 13 leading partner organizations, we recently developed a joint policy paper calling for practical action to address children’s eye health in an increasingly digital world. It highlights measures such as encouraging more time outdoors, promoting healthy visual habits, and ensuring children have access to regular vision screening.
By bringing together scientific evidence, education, and policy, we can help create an environment in which earlier intervention becomes standard practice rather than the exception. Ultimately, success will not be measured simply by introducing new treatments. It will be measured by whether fewer children progress to high myopia and whether societies recognize children’s eye health as an investment in lifelong wellbeing.
Glaucoma remains one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness worldwide. Where do you see the greatest opportunity to improve outcomes?
Glaucoma highlights a different challenge.
Glaucoma often progresses silently. Too many patients are diagnosed only after irreversible vision loss has already occurred. That is why earlier diagnosis remains one of the greatest opportunities in ophthalmology.
Santen has built one of the broadest glaucoma portfolios in the industry, supporting patients across the treatment journey, from prescription eye drops, including preservative-free options, through to surgical solutions for more advanced disease. Our goal is to give ophthalmologists the flexibility to choose the most appropriate treatment for each patient.
But our ambition goes further than providing therapies. We also want to support healthcare professionals through education, evidence generation and initiatives that help improve standards of care across the patient journey. In Spain, for example, our GlauCCare initiative brings together healthcare professionals, scientific societies, healthcare managers, and patient organizations to promote a more coordinated, quality-focused approach to glaucoma care. It demonstrates how collaboration can help raise the standard of care and improve patient outcomes.
Innovation, education and earlier diagnosis are not competing priorities; they reinforce one another. When they come together, patients have a much greater opportunity to preserve their vision and quality of life.
Santen’s long-term vision is to become a trusted leader in eye health. Why has that become such an important part of your strategy?
One of the biggest misconceptions in healthcare is that innovation alone changes outcomes. It does not.
Scientific advances achieve their full potential only when healthcare systems are ready to adopt them; healthcare professionals have access to the latest evidence, and patients receive timely diagnosis and treatment.
That is why collaboration has become a strategic priority for Santen.
We are proud to work alongside organizations such as IAPB and to participate as a High Impact Partner at the first Global Summit for Eye Health this year in November. These partnerships bring together governments, clinicians, patient organizations, NGOs, and industry to address challenges that no organization could solve independently.
Our role is to contribute our scientific expertise while helping translate evidence into practical action. Whether that means supporting earlier diagnosis in childhood myopia, advancing education, or contributing to policy discussions, we believe lasting impact comes from working across the entire eye health ecosystem.
EMEA has become an increasingly important region within Santen’s global organization. What makes it strategically significant?
EMEA combines many of the elements that will define the future of eye care.
It is home to world-leading ophthalmology experts, internationally recognized research institutions, and healthcare systems increasingly focused on prevention, value-based care, and patient outcomes. That makes it an ideal environment for introducing innovation while also helping to shape future models of care.
Today, Santen operates in more than 50 countries across the region and employs around 800 colleagues. According to IQVIA data, we grew at around twice the rate of the ophthalmology market in EMEA last year. We see significant opportunities in glaucoma, dry eye disease, childhood myopia and emerging disease areas such as ptosis.
Beyond our commercial presence, the region also plays an important role in generating evidence, strengthening partnerships and sharing best practice across healthcare systems.
This reflects Santen’s wider organizational evolution. As innovation becomes more closely connected with evidence generation, pricing, market access and public affairs, these capabilities are coming together to help ensure scientific advances translate into meaningful value for patients and healthcare systems. My expanded remit across EMEA and International Pricing, Market Access and Public Affairs reflects this more integrated approach.
The experience and insights gained across regions and healthcare systems help strengthen our global perspective, enabling us to accelerate innovation and access.
How we work is equally important. We are building an environment where people have clarity on direction, feel trusted to make decisions, and take ownership. This is what allows us to move faster and create value for patients in the long term.
Looking ahead, what would success for Santen, and for eye health, look like over the next decade?
I hope we will look back on this decade as the period when eye health became recognized as an essential part of public health.
We have never had greater scientific understanding or more opportunities to diagnose disease earlier, personalize treatment, and prevent avoidable vision loss. The challenge now is ensuring those advances reach patients consistently and equitably.
That requires continued investment in innovation, but also stronger collaboration, better awareness, and healthcare systems that place greater emphasis on prevention alongside treatment.
At Santen, our purpose is Happiness with Vision. It reflects a simple belief: better vision enables people to learn, work, remain independent, and enjoy life.
After more than 135 years dedicated exclusively to ophthalmology, Santen’s ambition remains clear. We want to help shape a future where fewer people experience avoidable sight loss, more patients benefit from earlier diagnosis, and innovation reaches everyone who can benefit from it. We believe that is how Santen can create lasting value – for patients, healthcare professionals, healthcare systems, and society.
