About 32 million people are expected to be affected by cancer by 2050, with new cases increasing by 12 million people annually.
Global pharmaceutical spending on anticancer drugs reached $223 billion in 2023, up $25 billion from 2022, and is expected to reach $2028 billion by 409.
Last year, 25 new active oncology substances were launched worldwide, bringing the total number of oncology drugs to 193 since 2014. But these drugs are not available to all patients, internationally.
In terms of research programs, more than 2023 oncology clinical studies were launched in 2.000, with significant promise for cancer treatment, many of them using cell and gene therapies, linking antibodies to drugs, using antibodies that target multiple targets, and therapies that associated with radiation therapy.
Anticancer treatments are increasing by 9% every year since 2019, but not all patients can get innovative treatments, as biomarkers that show which treatment is appropriate have not been adopted internationally, and in addition, not all countries have the new treatments or the infrastructure needed to implement the most advanced of them.
New oncology mechanisms used to develop new therapies now make up 25% of clinical trials
New gene therapies are being studied for more anti-cancer applications
The latest study by the largest health research company IQVIA, regarding "Global Trends in Oncology 2024 – Outlook to 2028", went into this mapping. The report points out that the increasing incidence of the disease, the increasing number of patients entering treatment and the expected increase in expenditure in this area will trigger a series of complex challenges for many years to come.
As it is pointed out, the new oncological mechanisms used for the development of new treatments now constitute 25% of clinical studies, focusing on gene and cell therapies, the conjugation of antibodies with specialized therapeutic active substances, but also on multi-target antibodies (multispecific antibodies ). All of these are targeted therapies that utilize innovative mechanisms of action and have been used against cancer for the last decade.
The research
Clinical studies for hematological cancers declined by 17% in 2023, while for solid tumors clinical development studies remained stable, after peaking in 2021.
PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors, which have seen significant growth over the past decade, have grown by 29% over the past five years and have started to decline in recent years, showing their upward trajectory in the market, leading to turning to even newer molecules for that particular goal.
The use of these inhibitors varies significantly between countries, with the US, Germany and France using two to three times more checkpoint inhibitors per capita than the UK and South Korea.
Many of the major European countries have similar usage rates to other developed markets, such as the Nordic countries.
Emerging biopharmaceutical companies were responsible for 60% of oncology trials in 2023, up from 33% a decade ago.
Oncology trials by China-based companies have grown to 35% from just 5% a decade ago.
Cell and gene therapy studies are focused on CAR-T cell therapies, particularly in hematological cancers. More than 250 such clinical studies have started in 2023, with a growing number in solid tumors.
Conjugate antibodies approved worldwide reach 15, and new studies of them have increased at an average annual rate of 22% over the past five years.
Ten bispecific antibodies are marketed worldwide for oncology, with many being developed for solid tumors.
Combination radiotherapy treatments are being tested in a range of tumours, mainly prostate and neuroendocrine tumours.
Multiple innovative methods are rapidly evolving with significant potential both alone and especially in combination with each other.
Regulators and industry are pushing the boundaries around cancer drug development to speed solutions to patients. In this direction, the evidence for the possibilities of using artificial intelligence is increasing, as the prospective researchers proceed to clinical development.
New anticancer drugs
A total of 125 oncology new active substances have been released worldwide in the last 5 years – almost twice as many as the 67 new drugs in the immediately preceding five years – and 259 in a 20-year period. But the circulation of these new preparations did not take place in all countries of the world.
Most oncology treatments are launched in the US, but over the past five years, China has overtaken it, with 83 new drugs in the past five years, up from 24 new treatments in 2014–2018. Of these 83 new drugs, 37 concerned only China, and have not been released in other countries.
The expense
Spending on cancer drugs will grow to $223 billion worldwide in 2023, with 74% concentrated in major developed markets (the United States, the four largest European countries, the United Kingdom and Japan), which have remained stable over the past five years.
Spending growth in these major developed markets is expected to be similar over the next five years to the past five years, with growth rates over the next five years to 2028 expected to range between 11-14% for both the US and its four largest countries Europe and the United Kingdom, while for Japan the growth rate is forecast to vary between 4–7%.
US spending on oncology increased from $99 billion in 2023, up from $65 billion in 2019. This figure represents 45% of global spending and is expected to grow to $2028 billion in 180. about.
Source: in.gr
