Asembia AXS26: What the Rise in CGTs Means for the Supply Chain

In his interview with Pharmaceutical Commerce ahead of Asembia’s AXS26 Summit, Joel Wayment, VP and general manager of Cardinal Health 3PL Services and Packaging Solutions at Cardinal Health, discusses how cell and gene therapy (CGT) requirements are reshaping supply chain design, particularly around sustainability, speed, and patient access.

Wayment highlights a shift toward reusable, multi-use shipping systems that help reduce waste while maintaining the strict temperature controls CGTs require. He also points to the rise of geographically closed packaging and logistics models, where manufacturing, packaging, and distribution are closely co-located to reduce transportation distances and lower CO₂ emissions.

This integrated approach not only improves sustainability but also meaningfully accelerates timelines. Through initiatives like “PDUFA to Patients in 7 Days,” tightly connected supply chain networks can dramatically shorten the path from approval to patient, in some cases reducing delivery to as little as 55 hours. For CGT patients, this compression of time represents faster access to life-changing therapies.