Moderate growth forecast for colorectal cancer drug market

The value of the colorectal cancer (CRC) therapeutics market will increase moderately, from $8.3 billion in 2013 to $9.4 billion by 2020, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.8%, new research forecasts.

According to business intelligence provider GBI Research’s latest report, this growth, which will occur across eight major developed countries, namely the USA, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Japan and Canada, will be limited by the patent expirations of Swiss pharma major Roche’s (ROG: SOX) Avastin (bevacizumab) and Bristol-Myers Squibb (NSYE: BMY)/Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY()/Merck KGaA's (MRK: DE) Erbitux (cetuximab) during the forecast period, which will prompt the uptake of lower-priced biosimilar versions of these drugs.

However, Saurabh Sharma, a senior analyst for GBI Research, says that despite its patent expiration, Avastin is expected to retain its market-leading position in the global CRC space through to 2020.