Type 2 diabetes drug sales to almost double to nearly $50 billion in 2021

The type 2 diabetes drug market will nearly double over the next decade, increasing from $26 billion in 2011 to nearly $50 billion in 2021 in the USA, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK and Japan, according to a new report from Decision Resources. The main factors fueling this growth are an increasing drug-treated patient population and a large pipeline of products expected to launch during this period.

The Pharmacor advisory service entitled Type 2 Diabetes finds that the dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) inhibitor drug class will continue to experience robust growth, given their increasing use in the second-line setting, and will hold a 28% market share by 2021. Merck & Co’s first-in-class DPP-IV inhibitor, sitagliptin (Januvia/Xelevia), will remain the leading agent in the class while other agents struggle to differentiate themselves, owing to their lack of significant clinical advantages over Januvia.

The glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist class will also experience strong growth with major-market sales forecasted to reach nearly $8 billion by 2021. Although these agents are expensive and require injections, they have a strong efficacy profile and can elicit weight loss.