Two Itochu units are expanding into the business of attracting more foreign drug companies to Japan, in a bid to help them develop innovative therapies for the local market that are already available overseas.

The Japanese trading house’s subsidiaries A2 Healthcare and ITC Venture Partners are launching an end-to-end hub service for international biotechs — arranging everything from early-stage consulting, regulatory advice and clinical testing support to post-launch distribution in Japan — according to people familiar with the matter who declined to be identified because the information isn’t public.

A spokesperson for Itochu declined to comment.

Intermediary support is crucial for drug availability in the nation, where more than 50 therapies have been identified as needed but unavailable to patients, a government-funded study reported in March.

The situation is known locally as "drug loss,” a term that refers to a list of treatments for which there is no current plan for introduction to the Japanese market. They include medicines for rare diseases, drug-resistant tuberculosis, cancer and Parkinson’s disease.

While Japan is home to some of the world’s biggest drug giants, including Takeda Pharmaceutical and Eisai, the number of medications locally available trails the U.S. and Europe. Officials have expressed concerns over the gap. Foreign drugmakers, especially smaller ones, find it challenging to navigate hurdles to market entry.

Tokyo-based trading house Itochu formally entered the contract research business in 2005. Health care is seen as a key growth sector by some of Japan’s biggest companies, as the country’s graying population drives an increased need for care.