Record Number Of New Chemical Entities In 1996

In 1996, there was a record number of New Chemical Entities launchedinto world markets. A total of 52 compounds and vaccines were introduced, with anti-infectives and central nervous system drugs standing out as fast-moving and innovative sectors.

Medical Advances Mid-way through the Decade of the Brain, it is perhaps fitting that the CNS sector saw some of the most significant innovative new products for 1996. At the beginning of the year, the launch of Rhone-Poulenc Rorer's glutamate antagonist Rilutek (riluzole) represented the first-ever approved drug for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or motor neuron disease, and it remains to be seen whether it will demonstrate activity in other neurodegenerative diseases.

There was more good news for multiple sclerosis sufferers, with the launch of a second interferon-based treatment, Avonex (interferon beta-1a), from Biogen, and a completely new approach to treating the disease, Teva's Copaxone (glatiramer acetate), launched right at the end of the year in Israel. As the roll-out of these products continues, MS sufferers and their physicians will benefit from increased choice in the range of drugs to treat the disease, and the competitive element which will surely arise should benefit health care payers.