Antineoplastic Medicine Docetaxel will Replace Paclitaxel

In the first half year of 2007, hospital medicine data shows that natural plant anti-tumor docetaxel will replace the monopoly position of market leader of paclitaxel. As the living environment and lifestyle changing, population aging and the pressure to survive increasing, China incidence rate of cancer rises and it becomes the first fatal disease. Cancer drug sales have gone up and maintain a stable high-speed growth. In 2006, oncology market growth rate is 33.22%, comparing with 2006’s first half year; growth rate of 2007 is 33.86%.

Among many antineoplastic agents, the natural plant antineoplastic gets largest share, accounting for 27.0% share, following by anti-metabolic tumor drugs, accounting for 26.1%. The top 10 anti-tumor products, plant species occupy two seats, as paclitaxel and docetaxel.They occupy the top two.

Since 2002, plant-based anticancer compound annual growth rate of 25.5%, lower than the average level of cancer drugs, which introduced new products with anticancer drugs in recent years, less, most products have been sold to the platform, the main product growth rate of paclitaxel slow down the. In contrast, docetaxel is the fastest growing of such products in the product.

In the first half of 2007 the plant antineoplastic, paclitaxel with 44.1% share of the market first, followed by docetaxel, accounting for 39.7% of the share. The two species accounted for 83.8% of the share of plant anticancer, and other varieties, vinorelbine occupied 6.7%, accounted elemene 3.3%, accounted for 3.2% of HCPT, the rest of the species accounted for only 3% market share.

Taxol has been a steady growth trend since 2002, a CAGR of 23.9%. However, due to its numerous manufacturers, competition is fierce. The sales of many manufacturers have grown rapidly since 2004, indicating the increasingly fierce competition.

Docetaxel belongs to microtubule depolymerization inhibitor (Docetaxel, docetaxel) by the French company Rhone-Poulenc Lok developed and produced, are taxanes, foreign approved for the treatment of advanced breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer. Docetaxel injection were selected for the 2004 edition of "national essential drug formulations varieties directory" and "national basic medical insurance and industrial injury insurance drug list", the indications for advanced ovarian cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, breast cancer. However, docetaxel provincial health insurance directory in different indications, such as the 2005 version of "Beijing basic medical insurance and industrial injury insurance drug list" in the product's indications of ovarian cancer was canceled.

Since 2002, docetaxel has maintained a rapid growth momentum. The CAGR is 88.5% since 2002, which is much higher than the same species’. Although the total sales is behind the paclitaxel, but it has rapid growth. It just needs some more time to catch up with paclitaxel becoming the first one in the line. There are just a few docetaxel suppliers in China's domestic market. Excellent enterprises get little competitiveness.And because the standard is always hard to get regularization, it causes a great obstacle to imitation. The situation is likely to be continued for some time.