Posted by Michael Wonder on 21 Apr 2018
Three steps toward a more sustainable path for targeted cancer drugs
18 April 2018 - Spending on cancer drugs in the United States has increased substantially over the past 5 years, from $26 billion in 2012 to more than $45 billion in 2016.
Targeted cancer drugs, including small molecules, monoclonal antibodies, and other therapies based on genomic and related analyses, contributed 60% of this spending growth. One estimate suggests that by 2021, cancer drugs will comprise one-quarter of the US late-stage pharmaceutical research and development pipeline, and 87% of these products will be targeted agents.
Imatinib, the small-molecule oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), is often cited as the model targeted cancer drug; imatinib is highly effective and has reduced toxicity vs previous therapies. For patients with CML treated with imatinib, overall 10-year survival is 84%. Introduction of imatinib was associated with a reduction in US age-adjusted CML deaths per 100 000 persons from 0.9 in 1996 to 0.4 in 2006. In 2015, the Medicare estimated monthly price for imatinib was $9299.
