Acute ischemic stroke market is "graveyard" for drug R&D

A survey of R&D in the acute ischemic stroke market over the past decade has found that only one drug, US biotechnology major Genetech's Activase (alteplase), has achieved marketing approval for more than a decade, making the therapeutic area a "graveyard" for drug R&D.

Decision Resources' new Pharmacor report entitled: Acute Ischemic Stroke, finds that there are few candidates in the pipeline, following recent failures, to improve therapy options for the disease in the near term. Drug treatment rates in this area are therefore likely to grow less than 1% per year through 2016, the report concludes.