Type 2 diabetes mellitus market ripe with opportunities for potential investors, says GBI Research

Analyst company GBI Research has concluded that due to an increasing demand for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) therapeutics, there is a large and competitive market landscape.

There are a number of drugs competing for different market segments, across multiple lines of therapy, according to business intelligence provider GBI Research.

A report from the company states that the emergence over the past decade of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors and sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors has intensified competition. These new drug classes have been highly commercially successful and are now well established within the T2DM treatment algorithm.

Global healthcare company Novo Nordisk’s Victoza, pharmaceutical company Merck’s Januvia and pharmaceutical company Janssen’s Invokana are the leading products within these drug classes. Last year these drugs generated $2.7 billion, $4.3 billion, and $1.6 billion, respectively.

Fiona Chisholm, analyst for GBI Research, said: “In spite of recent developments, there are still significant unmet needs for T2DM. Treatment regimens are often complex, and many drugs have limited long-term efficacy and side effects that are particularly undesirable for the T2DM patient population, such as increased cardiovascular risk factors or weight gain.

“Alongside the rapidly expanding prevalence population, this ensures that sustained investment in T2DM product innovation continues to be an attractive commercial prospect. Indeed, with 591 products in development, T2DM pipeline activity is very high in comparison to other related indications within metabolic disorders such as obesity and type 1 diabetes mellitus, which have 254 and 244 active products in development, respectively.”

T2DM therapeutics can often attract high values in licensing or co-development strategic consolidations. GBI Research’s analysis of licensing and co-development deals relating to T2DM therapeutics since 2006 has identified aggregate deal values of $9.2 billion and $9.5 billion, respectively, for deals with disclosed deal values.

“Despite this, the majority of first-in-class products in development for T2DM have no disclosed involvement in previous licensing or co-development. Among these products, the range of molecular targets is relatively wide, providing ample and diverse opportunities for potential investors. Entering into a licensing or co-development deal can have significant benefits for both parties, including shared product development risks, financial and R&D resource support, and portfolio or geographical expansion," Chisholm concluded.