New PhRMA industry profile reports 7,000 medicines currently in development
WASHINGTON – Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America’s member companies invested an estimated $51.2 billion last year in the research and development of new innovative treatments and cures, the association announced Monday. The figure represents the majority of all biopharmaceutical R&D spending – both public and private – in the United States.
The new R&D numbers, the result of a recent survey of PhRMA member companies, are highlighted in the newly released PhRMA 2015 Biopharmaceutical Research Industry Profile as well as a new industry chart pack, Biopharmaceuticals in Perspective.
Despite ongoing economic challenges, the biopharmaceutical industry continues to be one of America’s most research-intensive industries. According to a recent analysis from ndp│analytics, the biopharmaceutical industry leads the manufacturing sector in innovation and economic contributions. Biopharmaceutical companies on average invest as much as six times more in R&D, relative to their sales, than the average U.S. manufacturing firm. In 2014, PhRMA member companies invested nearly 24% of domestic sales into R&D.
“What the Industry Profile tells us – unequivocally – is that the commitment of America’s biopharmaceutical companies to solving the world’s most vexing medical challenges has never been more resolute,” stated John Castellani, president and CEO, PhRMA. “Our companies are tireless in their efforts to develop new innovative, life-saving medicines for patients – and these numbers are proof of that determination in action.”
The industry’s ongoing commitment to R&D was evident in the record number of 51 new medicines brought to U.S. patients last year. Forty-one of those approvals were by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research and 10 medicines were approved by FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. Among the CDER approvals, 41% were identified as first-in-class treatments – meaning they use a completely new approach to fighting a disease – and more than 20% were personalized medicines.
The industry’s pledge to R&D is further evidenced by the robust biopharmaceutical pipeline; more than 7,000 medicines are in development globally. A 2012 analysis of the biopharmaceutical pipeline revealed 70% of medicines are potential first-in-class treatments.
The road to bringing a new FDA-approved medicine to market is a long and formidable one, however, the association noted. Only 12% of drug candidates that enter clinical testing are eventually approved for use by patients. On average, it takes at least 10 years and more than $2.6 billion to bring a new medicine from the research pipeline to patients.