NOAC developers show mixed results in 1st half-year

Pharmaceutical companies manufacturing novel oral anticoagulants (NOAC) showed contrasting results in outpatient prescriptions in the first half of 2021, a market surveyor said Thursday.

Some domestic NOAC generic makers have been expelled from the market, while original NOAC developers absorbed the local competitors' market share.

(Source: UBIST)

According to a recent report of UBIST, six Korean companies producing generic NOAC drugs were crowded out of the market, marking a zero prescription by the end of June.

Their expulsion from the market came after the Supreme Court handed down a verdict in April, raising the hand of BMS and recognizing the product patent of its NOAC drug Eliquis (ingredient: apixaban).

According to the court's ruling, domestic pharmaceutical companies had to cease manufacturing and sales of Eliquis generic drugs and leave the market.

Other domestic companies are also clearing out their leftovers, showing significantly reduced sales performance since April.

Chong Kun Dang's Liquisia, Samjin Pharm's Elxaban, Yuhan Corp.'s Yuhan Apixaban, Hanmi Pharmaceutical's Apixaban, Aju Pharm Eliban, YooYoung Pharmaceutical's Yupix, and Huons' Apiquis have given up the sales of their NOAC products.

Korean companies were also affected by BMS' notice that it would file for compensation when others continue to infringe on BMS' rights to Eliquis.

Meanwhile, Daiichi Sankyo's Lixiana (ingredient: edoxaban), which had long ranked first in market share and sales, retained its position in the first half of 2021. In the first half, Lixiana accounted for 36.5 percent of all NOAC prescriptions by recording 33 billion won ($28.8 million) sales, up 4.1 percent from 31.7 billion won in the previous year.

Eliquis caught up with Bayer's Xarelto (ingredient: rivaroxaban). In the first half of 2021, Eliquis outperformed Xarelto.

Eliquis ranked second in the market, accounted for about 26 percent of the domestic NOAC market. In the first half, 23.7 billion won sales, down slightly from 23.7 billion won a year ago.

Xarelto’s sales slid to 23.3 billion won, down 6 percent from 24.8 billion won.

The prescription of Boehringer Ingelheim's Pradaxa (ingredient: dabigatran) stood at 6.26 billion won in the first six months of 2021, down 15 percent from 7.39 billion won.

Xarelto and Pradaxa have been attracting interest in their future sales performance as domestic pharmaceutical companies have avoided patents to make generic drugs of the two original NOAC medicines.

The drug patent for Xarelto expired on July 17, which makes whether the company would continue to show declining prescriptions in the future.

Aju Pharm, Jinyang Pharm, Huons, and Intro Biopharma have received permission to introduce generic drugs of Pradaxa in the domestic market, and their entry could cause changes in Pradaxa's prescription performance.

In addition to Pradaxa, Xarelto's drug patent will expire in October. About 23 companies, including SK Chemicals, Chong Kun Dang, and Hanmi Pharmaceutical, have avoided BMS' follow-up patents, and SK Chemicals and Hanmi Pharmaceutical, plan to supply generic drugs of rivaroxaban.

The outpatient prescription of NOAC products totaled 90.6 billion won in the first half-year, down from 91.5 billion won recorded a year ago.