News Feature | February 13, 2014

Global Hepatitis B Vaccine Market To See Only Modest Growth Despite New Product Releases

Source: Outsourced Pharma

By Estel Grace Masangkay

The global hepatitis B virus (HBV) market will only see a modest increase in Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.2% regardless of new product launches, says the research and consulting firm GlobalData in its new report PharmaPoint: Prophylactic Hepatitis B Virus Vaccines – Global Drug Forecast and Market Analysis to 2022.

The increase in HBV vaccine sales will be driven by the upcoming launch of Dynavax Technologies’ Heplisav as well as Sanofi Pasteur MSD’s Hexyon. Heplisav is forecasted to reach peak-year sales of $85 million, while a more substantial $520 million was projected for Hexyon.

GlobalData’s Analyst covering Infectious Diseases, Christopher Pace, Ph.D., said, “Dynavax hopes to leverage Heplisav’s superior immunogenicity and dosing regimen to increase HBV vaccine uptake in the adult market. On the other hand, Sanofi Pasteur MSD is positioning Hexyon to be the first fully liquid pediatric hexavalent vaccine.”

The majority of HBV vaccine sales will occur in the U.S., which will have a higher CAGR of 3.4% compared to other major markets including Canada, France, the UK, and Japan.

An estimated two billion people are infected with HBV around the world, with 600,000 HBV-related deaths every year. Insufficient HBV vaccination coverage rates in particular high-risk populations remain one of the most critical unmet needs in the market, according to the GlobalData. “For both children and adults, these companies must ensure that physicians understand immunization recommendations and are able to effectively identify patients. Overall, ensuring high coverage rates will be essential to the commercial success of HBV vaccines during the forecast period,” Pace said.

Country-specific immunization recommendations will be a major influence in the HBV vaccine uptake in the pediatric and adult segments. Equally important are government endorsements of HBC vaccines, specifically pediatric combination and novel adult vaccines, which are expected to influence HBV vaccine market growth, the report said.