Driven by Sales of Enbrel, Remicade and Humira, spondyloarthropathies Drug Market Grew to Nearly $2 Billion in 2008

Newly Approved Simponi is Expected to Achieve Strong Uptake in this Niche Market, According to a New Report from Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., April 30 /PRNewswire/ — Decision Resources, one of the world’s leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that the availability of Amgen/Wyeth/Takeda’s Enbrel, Centocor/Schering-Plough/Mitsubishi Tanabe’s Remicade, and Abbott/Eisai’s Humira has driven dramatic growth in the spondyloarthropathy (SpA) market, which reached nearly $2 billion in 2008 in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and United Kingdom. These agents have revolutionized the treatment of niche immune diseases known as the seronegative SpAs – ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and reactive arthritis – and ushered in a period of strong sales growth in these markets.

The new Spectrum report entitled Strategic Overview of Spondyloarthropathies: Tapping the Market Opportunity of Niche Immune Diseases finds that the need for efficacious therapies to treat SpAs resulted in strong adoption of TNF-alpha inhibitors and, in turn, has proven to be a source of additional sales for blockbuster agents such as Enbrel, Remicade and Humira. In addition, physicians’ familiarity with TNF-alpha inhibitors is expected to aid in the uptake of the newest agent in this drug class, Centocor/Schering-Plough/Janssen/Mitsubishi Tanabe’s Simponi, which was approved in late April by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.

“Simponi’s advantages over existing TNF-alpha inhibitors are appealing to rheumatologists, and we forecast strong adoption for this agent,” said Decision Resources Analyst Jennifer Moniz Carpenter, M.B.A. “However the success of the TNF-alpha inhibitors has reduced the level of perceived need in these markets, and in order to be successful in this space, other companies developing agents for SpAs – including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Novartis and Celgene – will need to fully understand the dynamics and remaining needs of the individual indications that it comprises.”

According to the report, the SpA market will continue to grow over the next five to ten years, although the sales picture across the three diseases will vary widely as the reactive arthritis drug sector is markedly different than the sectors for the other two diseases. While the combined market in 2008 for ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis was approximately $1.8 billion, the reactive arthritis drug market in that year was only $3 million, and TNF-alpha inhibitors have not been widely incorporated into medical practice for this exceedingly rare disease.

About Spectrum’s Strategic Overviews

Spectrum’s Strategic Overviews are comprehensive examinations of dynamic biopharmaceutical markets and industry issues. Primary research, data analysis, thought-leader consultation and the expertise of the industry-savvy Spectrum staff drive reports that offer breadth of coverage along with depth of strategic insight.

About Decision Resources

Decision Resources (www.decisionresources.com) is a world leader in market research publications, advisory services and consulting designed to help clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets. Decision Resources is a Decision Resources, Inc. company.

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    Decision Resources                              Decision Resources, Inc.
    Christopher Comfort                             Elizabeth Marshall
    781-296-2597                                    781-296-2563
    ccomfort@dresources.com                         emarshall@dresources.com

SOURCE Decision Resources