Boehringer Ingelheim’s 2023 was largely marked by the highly anticipated launch of its Cyltezo, the first interchangeable biosimilar to AbbVie’s Humira. But with sales disappointing, the company is now turning its attention to a deep late-stage pipeline that could bring 25 new treatments to market through 2030.
Alongside that ambitious goal, Boehringer plans to kick off 10 new phase 2 and 3 trials in the next 12-18 months, it said in its full-year earnings release.
The company specifically highlighted its oral MDM2-p53 antagonist brigimadlin, which recently entered a key trial testing the candidate in patients with rare cancer dedifferentiated liposarcoma, and its HER2 tyrosine kinase inhibitor zongertinib.
Also on the horizon is Boehringer’s metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis-related liver disease prospect survodutide. In a recently reported phase 2 trial, the med improved disease in 83% of patients.
Survodutide is a novel glucagon/GLP-1 receptor dual agonist, a drug class that has more than proven its worth in weight loss and obesity. Chasing similar indications from GLP-1 makers such as Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, Boehringer’s candidate is currently being tested in phase 3 obesity studies.
As for its commercialized drugs, the star of the company’s portfolio is once again its Eli Lilly-partnered diabetes powerhouse Jardiance. With a recent U.S. and European chronic kidney disease nod in hand, the drug reached new heights with 31% growth to $8 billion.
The new indication could potentially help cover cardiovascular-renal-metabolic conditions in more than 1 billion patiens, Boehringer noted.
Other than Jardiance, the company’s Ofev also served as a growth driver. That med, which treats idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and certain fibrosing interstitial lung diseases, rose 12.8% to $3.8 billion.
All in all, Boehringer’s total human pharma sales rose 10.3% to $22.5 billion in 2023. The company also touts a thriving animal health business that contributed $5.1 billion to its top line of $27.6 billion.
2024 revenues are projected to be a “slight” year-over-year increase “on a comparable basis,” Boehringer said.
The German drugmaker recently disclosed a plan to lay off staffers from its customer-facing teams for Cyltezo as part of a pivot toward a hybrid in-person and virtual sales model in the face of tamer than expected sales.
Still, Boehringer “remains committed” to the biosimilar, a spokesperson told Fierce Pharma at the time.
Along with Cyltezo, the company also markets an unbranded copy of the drug that is sold at an 81% discount to Humira. The branded version, meanwhile, comes with a 5% discount to AbbVie’s original blockbuster.