Can specialty drugs turn pharma tide?

Want a preview of some "sobering" and "possibly a little alarming" market data? IMS Health gave preliminary figures on the state of the pharma industry to the Health Industry Group Purchasing Organization. Brace yourself: U.S. market growth for drugs grew by only 3.8 percent in 2007--the worst growth rate since 1961.

Can new products turn the tide? In Vivo notes that new drugs in general aren't delivering the same bang of bucks they used to. But here's a bright spot. Specialty drugs do deliver. According to IMS, the number of primary-care blockbusters dropped to 29 from 33 in 2006, but the number of specialty blockbusters grew to 30 from 25.

IMS has its eye on four 2008 drug launches that have blockbuster potential, and three of them are specialty drugs. So, says an IMS rep, "the blockbuster model isn't dead, but perhaps the primary care-driven market is."

- find out more--including the potential blockbusters--at In Vivo

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