Pipeline launches in the RA market will be major contributor to market growth to $11.5 billion In 2018

Drugs with new mechanisms, in particular global behemoth Pfizer's oral JAK inhibitor CP-690,550 and Chugai/Roche's Actemra (tocilizumab), will launch for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and should offer advantages over current therapies, but do not come without some safety signals., according to a new report from Datamonitor. Late-stage pipeline launches will be a major contributor to market growth from $7.4 billion in 2008 to $11.5 billion in 2018.

The shift from Western regions to countries in Eastern Europe and South America is now a prominent feature of modern RA clinical trials. This has led to variability in placebo and drug responses resulting in higher failure rates, which will continue to be a difficult hurdle for drug development in rheumatoid arthritis, says Datamonitor.

Pfizer's JAK inhibitor CP-690,550 blazes the trail for small molecule kinase inhibitors in RA. Despite efficacy being in line with biologics, product positioning, safety and cost are key debatable issues for uptake of this new drug upon launch in 2012. Datamonitor forecasts sales in the seven major markets of $900.0 million in 2018.

Pre-launch awareness, robust clinical data and marketing capability leads Datamonitor to believe Actemra, from Swiss drug major Roche and its Japanese subsidiary Chugai, will have a significant impact on the market. Safety remains a question, but physicians are willing to deal with issues highlighted in clinical trials. Datamonitor expects Actemra to achieve blockbuster sales by 2015.