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U.S. Skin Cancer Market
Frost & Sullivan, April 2011, Pages: 65
Rising Cases of Skin Cancer in the United States Drive the Demand for Innovative Treatments
In 2010, there were approximately 1.14 million skin cancer incidences in the United States alone. This is expected to increase to 1.25 million in 2017. Globally, a 10 percent decrease in the stratospheric ozone is projected to cause 300,000 additional nonmelanoma skin cancers and 4,500 melanoma cases every year. The diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer at the early stages result in significantly greater chances of survival. However, the available drug treatments are associated with high toxicity and poor response rates. “Only two approved drugs are available for melanoma,” notes the analyst of this research service. “Both interferon alpha-2b and interleukin-2 (IL-2) are not completely effective and have a high degree of side effects, affecting patients’ quality of life.”
Moreover, no FDA-approved drugs have been launched for melanoma for more than a decade. At present, patients are limited to taking chemotherapy (dacarbazine) and IL-2 (Proleukin). Neither treatment has shown to have any meaningful improvement in overall survival. This has led to a high unmet need among skin cancer patients, especially those with melanoma. For now, surgery is the most preferred form of treatment for early and high-risk skin cancer patients. Most skin cancers including melanoma can be effectively treated by removing the skin lesion and ensuring that the edges of the lesion are free from tumor cells. As tumors on the skin are easily detected, early skin cancer diagnosis has resulted in a reduced need for other forms of treatment.
Expensive Low-efficacy Drugs to Give Way to Targeted Therapies and Affordable Generics
New drug launches for melanoma treatment are expected in the near future. A few of the drugs in the pipeline have the potential to be blockbusters — especially for targeted therapies. Around ten medications are expected to be launched during 2011-17. However, a few major medications are expected to lose patent protection in the coming years. The patent for the key drug Intron-A has already expired. “The entry of lower-priced biosimilars/generics will restrain market revenue growth,” observes the analyst. “Although entry of generics could increase adoption rate and availability, it would drive down the prices.”
Pharmaceuticals and biotech companies need to develop novel medications with better survival rates for metastatic melanoma and less toxicity. Such novel cancer therapies will command premium pricing resulting in high revenues for the drug companies. However, without adequate reimbursements, patients may tend to choose biosimilars instead of expensive novel therapies. To counter this trend, pharmaceuticals and biotech companies must offer personalized therapies with the goal of administering the right drug at the right dose for each patient. Technologies such as genomic and proteomic data profiling are likely to yield novel molecular markers that detect skin cancer progression. This is expected to generate significant opportunities for developing more effective therapies for skin cancer.
Market Sectors
Expert Frost & Sullivan analysts thoroughly examine the following market sectors in this research:
By Cancer Type:
- Melanoma (In situ, Invasive)
- Nonmelanoma [Basal cell carcinoma (BCC), Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC)]
By Drug Class:
- Interferon-alpha-2b
- Interleukin-2 (IL-2)
- Chemotherapy
- Novel therapeutic approaches
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