BioSeeker Group Valuates the Cancer Prevention Market

The quest for primary and secondary cancer prevention has been ongoing for some years. Drug developers in the oncology arena have much to learn from their cardiovascular counterparts.

(PRWEB) June 16, 2004 -- Drug developers in the oncology arena have much to learn from their cardiovascular counterparts. Identification of risk factors for cardiovascular disease provided the rationale for preventive therapy. Identification of cigarette smoking as a significant risk factor has generated a growing 500 million dollar industry of medications to help stop smoking. High serum cholesterol is another risk factor. Anti-dyslipidemics achieved global sales of $21.7 billion in 2002. Meta-analysis has showed that antiplatelet therapy, especially with aspirin, results in 25% overall reduction in the risk of developing a recurrent adverse vascular event. The antithrombotics market continues to show growth, driven mainly by Plavix (clopidogrel), which achieved sales of $2.5 billion in 2002. Plavix is approved for secondary prevention after a heart attack or stroke. Hypertension is another important risk factor. The global hypertensive market was worth $36.8bn in 2002, and is expected to continue to grow. Sales of angiotensin blockers drive this development with sales of $7.4bn in 2002.

The quest for primary and secondary cancer prevention has been ongoing for some years. One of the most debated is the anti-inflammatory drugs inhibiting COX-2 for prevention of colorectal carcinoma and other types of cancer. Other examples include hormonal therapy as prevention of prostate and breast cancer. Tamoxifen, a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), was actually approved as cancer prevention for women with high risk of breast cancer in 1998, thus being the first cancer prevention drug ever approved by the FDA. At ASCO 2004 cholesterol lowering "Statins" were presented and showed promising results.

Many other classes of agents have shown promising chemopreventive activity. Signal transduction modulators, growth factor receptor inhibitors, oncogene inhibitors and retinoids, have already shown chemopreventive activity. Steroidal hormones are implicated in breast, ovary, prostate and other cancers. Anti-androgens, anti-oestrogens and aromatase inhibitors are promising at these targets. Inflammation and oxidative damage are associated with carcinogenesis in epithelial tissues, such as colon, bladder, oesophagus, head and neck and lung cancer. Different anti-inflammatory agents have shown chemopreventive activity--nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that inhibit COX-1 and COX-2; selective COX-2 inhibitors; inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) inhibitors; and lipoxygenase inhibitors. Many anti-oxidants are dietary products, thus readily available for the entire population for little cost. They have potential in tissues like lung and colon with high levels of carcinogen exposure. Inducers of enzymes involved in carcinogen detoxication are also promising antimutagens. Tea polyphenols and the combination of selenium with vitamin E have also received attention recently.

In the years to come, important gains are anticipated which will allow even better definition of the mechanisms behind cancer, more precise early detection and estimates of cancer risk, and quantitative histopathological evaluation of pre-cancerous tissues.

The implementation of successful chemoprevention trials, however, requires new thinking and additional skills compare to the standard curative trials, often in patients with metastatic disease that are currently seen in oncological research. Companies must be open to unconventional collaborations across disciplines, in the aim of creating trials suited for this new and possibly very profitable niche. One difficulty is the trial design for chemopreventative drugs. Another difficulty is the importance of proving safety in the chemopreventive setting; maybe this is even more challenging than proving efficacy. The risk of discovering unwanted side effects once tried in late stage trials or prescribed to large populations at relatively low absolute risk of developing cancer, cannot be underestimated. There are no guarantees or easy solutions to that problem.

Currently, over 50 chemoprevention drugs are under clinical development. Among these you will find tomorrows drugs, but chemoprevention trials are long and tedious.
Companies with focus in cancer prevention include Merck, Pfizer/Pharmacia, Novartis, Eli Lilly, AstraZeneca, Searle, Colotech, Pantarhei Biosciences, Akzo Nobel, Applied Research Systems, BristolMyersSquibb, Kissei Pharmaceutical, Karobio, Watson Pharmaceuticals, New Life Pharmaceuticals, Protein Tech Int., Du Pont Pharm, Endorecherche, Teikoku Hormone Mfg, United Biomedical, Yamanouchi, Takeda, Ono Pharmaceutical, Stressgen, Roche, MedImmune, Epimmune, Biovest Int., GTx Health Decisions, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, Johnson&Johnson.

For more information: Please see www.bioseeker.com

BioSeeker Group (BSG) provide products and services focused on assisting corporate executives in their decision making process. We do this in several ways, at different levels, to maximize the value for our customers. We are continuously improving our products quality and usefulness. Technical improvements are one important factor to keep our competitive advantage. BioSeeker Group increase value for its customers by 5 value creating steps.