Pipeline promises $10 billion says Novartis
pharmafile | November 25, 2003 | News story | |Â Â Â
Novartis has unveiled details of major new drugs in its pipeline which it says could produce annual sales of $10 billion.
From a total of 78 drugs in development, the company has 10 new treatments in diseases areas such as cancer, diabetes and blood pressure which could help maintain its current high growth rate.
In the past four years Novartis won US approval for 11 new compounds, more than any of its rivals, a position it aims to maintain by filing up to 17 products for regulatory approval by the end of 2005.
Chairman and chief executive Dr Daniel Vasella said: "Pharmaceuticals remains an attractive market for top innovators and we will leverage our commercial success and strengths to increase the number of blockbuster products in our portfolio."
Novartis' ten top new products include treatments for oncology and transplantation as well as Zoledronic acid for postmenopausal osteoporosis and Paget disease, with a filing for the latter indication expected in 2004.
Products the company plans to file for approval in 2005 include: its iron overload anaemia drug ICL670; PTK787, a colorectal cancer treatment that it will co-market with Schering AG; kidney transplant drug FTY270, which Novartis in-licensed from Mitsubishi Pharma, as well as other treatments for cancer, hypertension and hepatitis B.
The company has concentrated a significant proportion of its R&D budget on developing new cancer treatments. More than a fifth of its 78 drugs in development focus on cancer, an area Novartis views as key to its growth.
Another area is cardiovascular disease, responsible for more than a tenth of projects being investigated.
The company has a further 47 candidates in advanced pre-clinical testing that it expects to enter clinical trials in the next two years.
