Uptake of Next-Generation Antifungals Has Intensified Competition in the Severe Fungal Infections D...( However Generic Erosion and a Dearth ...),Health

However, Generic Erosion and a Dearth of Promising Emerging Therapies Will Result in Modest Annual Growth, According to a New Report from Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, owing to their improvements in safety and efficacy, physicians are increasingly prescribing next-generation antifungals such as Pfizer's Vfend, Schering-Plough's Noxafil, Merck's Cancidas, Astellas' Mycamine and Pfizer's Eraxis. Following the recent launches of several next-generation azoles (such as Vfend and Noxafil) and echinocandins (such as Cancidas, Mycamine and Eraxis), the severe fungal infections market has become increasingly competitive.

The new Pharmacor report entitled Severe Fungal Infections finds that market competition will continue to intensify and the generic erosion of key agents and a dearth of promising emerging therapies will limit growth to a modest two percent annually from 2007 to 2017 in the severe fungal infections drug market. The report also finds that no new products other than Basilea's isavuconazole are expected to generate significant sales in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Japan through 2017.

"Interviewed physicians regard isavuconazole as a highly promising new antifungal, and we forecast the agent to be an important driver in the severe fungal infection market through 2017," said Jose Avalos, Ph.D., analyst at Decision Resources. "Isavuconazole provides a favorable spectrum of activity and safety and is likely to be available as both an oral and intravenous therapy. This agent will compete with other marketed drugs in its class and its sales will help offset the declines due to patent expiries of key brands over the next 10 years."

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