Release issued 16th June 2009

Uptake of novel agents from Novexel, Johnson & Johnson and Wyeth will drive growth, according to a new report from Decision Resources
 
June 16, 2009-Waltham, Mass. - Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, despite generic erosion of key brands, the Hospital-Acquired Gram-Negative Infections drug market will increase by $1 billion from 2008 to 2018 in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Japan.
 
The new Pharmacor report entitled Gram Negative Infections finds that the introduction and uptake of next-generation Cephalosporins, Carbapenems, Quinolones, and Beta-Lactam/Beta-Lactamase Inhibitors, will be a significant driver of market growth through 2018. Among these emerging therapies, Novexel's NXL-104/Ceftazidime, a novel Beta-Lactam/Beta-Lactamase Inhibitor agent, is positioned to offer the most significant advance in the treatment of Hospital-Acquired Gram-Negative Infections and will earn more than $250 million in sales in 2018. Additionally, the continued uptake of two recent market entrants-Johnson & Johnson's Doribax and, to a lesser extent, Wyeth's Tygacil-will also drive the market. Although these three agents and several other emerging therapies will drive market growth, generic erosion of key brands will temper overall market sales through 2018, according to the report.
 
Generic erosion of top branded products such as Piperacillin/Tazobactam (Wyeth's Zosyn/Tazocin), Imipenem/Cilastatin (Merck's Primaxin/Tienam), Meropenem (Cubist Pharmaceuticals/AstraZeneca's Merrem/Meronem) and Levofloxacin (Johnson & Johnson's Levaquin, Sanofi-Aventis's Tavanic and Daiichi Sankyo's Cravit) will have the greatest impact on the market. In 2008, these four products accounted for approximately 50 percent of the Hospital-Acquired Gram-Negative Infections market. The report forecasts that, in 2018, generic erosion will reduce the combined sales of these agents to approximately 25 percent of the market.
 
The report also finds that drug development for Gram-Negative Infections has been slow and overshadowed by interest and investment in developing novel therapies for the more lucrative market of Hospital-Acquired Infections due to Gram-Positive pathogens, namely, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA). However, as competition increases and opportunities decline in the market for hospital-acquired infections due to MRSA, the Hospital-Acquired Gram-Negative Infections market segment is ripe with attractive drug development opportunities.
 
"Competition between agents is relatively low in the hospital-acquired gram-negative infections market when compared with the market for hospital-acquired infections due to gram-positive pathogens," said Decision Resources Analyst Hemali Patel, Ph.D. "Minimal competition in the late-stage pipeline and high unmet need will allow novel agents with clearly demonstrated efficacy against key Gram-Negative Pathogens to command a high price and favorable formulary position-two key attributes that underlie commercial success in this market."
 
About Decision Resources
Decision Resources (www.decisionresources.com) is a world leader in market research publications, advisory services and consulting designed to help clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets. Decision Resources is a Decision Resources, Inc. company.

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