Global Cancer Therapeutics Market Worth $6.85 Billion

According to a new Market Engineering study by Frost & Sullivan, a marketing consulting firm, the size of the total world cancer therapeutics market is estimated at approximately $6.85 billion. The study, titled U.S., European, and Japanese Cancer Therapeutics Markets, identifies these regional markets to include pharmaceuticals which are used to treat cancers of the breast, lung, genital organs, urinary system, blood and lymph systems, gastrointestinal tract, brain and to treat melanoma.

There is no denying that a direct correlation can be drawn between the increasing world population and the rise in global cancer diagnoses. This correlation is expected to remain constant as more and more people are living longer and consequently exposing themselves to prevalent risk factors for the disease, such as smoking.

Traditionally, the larger, ethical pharmaceutical companies could rely on brand recognition for profitability. These companies have the ability to generate the capital needed to fund further research and development efforts in cancer therapeutics. According to Frost & Sullivan, these players are being challenged by a second tier of competition. As patents expire, the door is kicked open allowing generic companies to produce cheaper generic versions of branded anticancer agents.

Frost & Sullivan drug discovery analyst, Jennifer Young, projects that there are a couple of ways for market participants to capitalize on market growth. According to Young, successful companies will: "Invest in the in-house research and development of safer, more effective agents, and acquire or license new agents from biotechnology, or other drug discovery companies."

Some of the emerging technology trends identified in the report include:

• Anti-cancer therapeutic vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, angiogenesis inhibitors, and gene therapy (which encompasses several innovative techniques
• the insertion of a functioning gene into cancer cells to correct the inborn genetic error responsible for their growth and abnormal spread
• the insertion of a functioning gene into cancer cells to sensitize them to a drug which would otherwise not affect them
• the insertion of a functioning gene into cancer cells to stimulate the body's immune system to recognize and destroy them.

For more information: Frost & Sullivan, 2525 Charleston Road, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. Telephone: 650-961-9000. Fax: 650-961-5042.