Cancer Pain

Pharmacor -- May 2007

  Introduction:

Pain is a frequent comorbidity of cancer that is often feared more than cancer-related mortality itself. Given the rising incidence of cancer and the increasing life expectancy of cancer patients, the prevalence of cancer pain will continue to rise in the foreseeable future, presenting a significant opportunity to drug developers in the pain arena.

  Questions Answered in This Report:

The cancer pain pipeline is stocked with a variety of novel intranasal, inhaled, transdermal, and transmucosal reformulations of opioids. Which patients will be the primary users of these products? Do any of these formulations hold significant commercial promise?

The patents of several market-leading agents, including the fentanyl transdermal patch (Johnson & Johnson’s Duragesic) and the fentanyl lozenge (Cephalon’s Actiq), recently expired or will expire soon. How will these expiries affect market value and prescription of these agents? What will be the uptake of Fentora, Cephalon’s follow-on agent to Actiq?

Pregabalin (Pfizer’s Lyrica) was recently approved for the treatment of neuropathic pain. What will be its impact on the neuropathic cancer pain market?

A new drug class, the biologic RANKL inhibitors, will launch during our ten-year forecast period for the treatment of bone metastases and cancer-induced bone loss. This drug class inhibits bone loss through a novel mechanism of action. What do physicians think about this class and its prospects for the treatment of metastatic bone pain? What will be its impact on the cancer pain market, and which drugs will cede patient share?

  Scope:

Markets covered: United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, Japan.

Primary research: 58 country-specific interviews with thought-leading oncologists, pain specialists, and palliative care specialists.

Epidemiology: Prevalent cases of severe cancer pain, breakthrough cancer pain, neuropathic cancer pain, and metastatic bone pain.

Population segments in market forecast: Severe cancer pain, breakthrough cancer pain, neuropathic cancer pain, and metastatic bone pain.

Emerging therapies: Phase II: 15 drugs; Phase III: 13 drugs; preregistration: 3 drugs; registered: 1 drug. Coverage of four select preclinical and Phase I products.

Market forecast features: Incorporating pharmacological treatment of severe cancer pain, breakthrough cancer pain, neuropathic cancer pain, and metastatic bone pain, we forecast drug sales for cancer pain through 2015.