[Newsmp] MSD is leading the anticancer drug market with its flagship drug Keytruda.
According to quarterly reports on the oncology business unit of major global Big Pharma, MSD’s oncology division has exceeded KRW 30 trillion in sales. (Based on the exchange rate as of Mar. 10)
MSD posted nearly KRW 28 trillion in annual sales last year with just one product, Keytruda. Keytruda started at about KRW 5 trillion in the first quarter of 2021 and expanded its sales every quarter, achieving sales of KRW 7.2 trillion in the fourth quarter of last year.
Moreover, as Lynparza, Lenvima, and Reblozyl were added, the oncology business unit alone gained sales of KRW 30.55 trillion. This is an increase of more than 20% from 2021.
Followed by MSD, Johnson & Johnson posted sales of KRW 21 trillion in the oncology division, and AstraZeneca also achieved sales of nearly KRW 20 trillion, a 12.1% increase to about KRW 19.35 trillion.
Pfizer earned about KRW 16 trillion in sales last year but edged down compared to 2021, and Novartis grew 6.1%, approaching KRW 15 trillion.
AbbVie posted sales of KRW 8.7%, down 9.0%, and Eli Lilly also decreased by KRW 100 billion from 2021 to KRW 7.5 trillion.
Sanofi grew slightly to KRW 1.3 trillion, and GSK approached the KRW 1 trillion mark with a double-digit growth rate.
In the meantime, immune checkpoint inhibitor and (ICI) CAR-t cell therapy markets continued to sprout.
In particular, Abecma and Breyanzi (BMS) recorded triple-digit growth rates in the CAR-t cell therapy market, while the leaders, Yescarta and Tecartus (Gilead Sciences), maintained a growth rate of close to 70%.
On the other hand, Kymriah (Novartis), the only one to be covered by health benefits in Korea, saw its growth fall.
In the immune checkpoint inhibitor market, Keytruda is at the head with a growth rate of 21.8% with annual sales of KRW 27.7 trillion last year.
Opdivo (BMS) also exceeded KRW 10 trillion with a growth rate of about 10%, but the gap with Keytruda widened even more.
Tecentriq (Roche) and Imfinzi (AstraZeneca) recorded double-digit growth rates with KRW 5.3 and 2.8 trillion, but they were far away from the leading groups.
Meanwhile, Eli Lilly’s Tyvyt (sintilimab) showed a significant decrease in sales recently, while dual immunotherapy combination treatment Opdualag (BMS) expanded its sales to about KRW 140 billion in the fourth quarter.
