Janssen's psoriasis drug Stelara set to generate $1.4 billion by 2015

Psoriasis drugStelara (ustekinumab), from US health care giant Johnson & Johnson’s (NYSE: JNJ) Europe-based subsidiary Janssen Biotech, is set to become the leading brand among systemic treatments for psoriasis by 2017, according to independent analyst firm Datamonitor Healthcare.

The analysts predict that Stelara, whose commercial attractiveness is driven by its high efficacy and infrequent dosing schedule, is forecast to generate annual sales of around $1.4 billion in 2015 across the USA, Japan and five major EU markets of France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK. Stelera was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in September.

In addition, Stelara’s main competitors are set to see a rapid decline over the next eight years due to the threat from biosimilar competition. Their combined value is forecast to fall by £1.8 billion to £1.4 billion in 2022.