Redefining Pharma as Biotech Dominates Industry's Growth

Seven of the 10 top selling drugs in 2014 will be products of biotechnology, according to a new report from EvaluatePharma, a London-based provider of information to the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Roche’s (RHHBY.PK), Avastin, a monoclonal antibody used to treat cancer, is expected to be the top seller, with revenues of more than $9.2 billion. Gone from the list will be many of today’s several small molecule drugs such as Lipitor, as patents expire.

The list represents quite a change from 2000, when Epogent/Procrit from Amgen (AMGN) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) was the only biotech product to make it on the list of top 10 selling drugs. In fact, EvaluatePharma predicts that biotech drugs will account for half of the 100 top selling drugs by 2014, up from just 11 percent in 2000.

But despite the rise in prominence of biotechnology products, don’t expect to see a big change in the names on the list. Among the sellers of these products include Roche, Abbott (ABT), Wyeth (WYE), Takeda (TKPHF.PK), Sanofi-Aventis (SNY), and Johnson & Johnson, all companies traditionally thought of as pharmaceutical companies rather than biotechnology. It reflects how a wave of acquisitions, partnering, and licensing deals have blurred the line between pharma and bio.

Overall, EvaluatePharma said while the higher value products are shifting towards biotech, small-molecule drugs will continue to represent the bulk of the pharmaceutical industry’s sales in 2014, generating revenues of $406 billion compared to $169 billion for biotech products.

The report is available can be viewed at EvaluatePharma’s website.

Disclosure: No position