Abstract
Current, pipeline and emerging drugs for the treatment of peripheral neuropathy and neuropathic pain Updated Quarterly
Overview: This report estimates that Peripheral Neuropathy (PN) and
Neuropathic Pain (NP) affect 170 to 270 million individuals globally. PN and
NP are causally linked to a number of diseases, however diabetes, cancer and
HIV alone are expected to increase the prevalence of PN and NP by more than
10% by 2012. PN and NP are areas of significant and critical unmet need. There
are no cures for PN and NP is difficult to treat and often unresponsive to all
available therapies. Today' s armoury of drugs for the treatment of NP shows
significant reliance on "second-indication" drugs, which were initially
developed to treat other primary indications (e.g. anticonvulsants,
antidepressants). This report gives a comprehensive update on all current
drugs, together with the entire drug development pipeline, from pre-clinical
through to Phase III, Registration and initial Launch. The pipeline includes
80 candidates being developed to treat PN and NP as a primary indication and
60 "second-indication" drugs. More than 300 patents published in the PN and NP
field between 2002 and 2008 have also been assessed and presented, together
with the identification of potential candidate molecules and drug targets
which have not entered the development pipeline, but which may do so in the
future. This report was written to provide a comprehensive update on
therapeutic developments relating to PN and NP, both in tackling its most
serious and debilitating symptoms, but also in targeting and potentially
correcting the underlying disease mechanisms. Commercial evaluation and
assessments including markets, market size, market sectors, sales and trends
relating to PN and NP are also included in this report. Report Description
Drug Targets: Most current and developmental therapies for neuropathic
conditions are directed at NP. Moreover, many of today' s commonly used drugs
in this area were developed for other indications, but subsequently were found
to offer useful application in the treatment of NP. These include
anticonvulsants, antidepressants and others. These "second indication" drugs
represent around 10 pharmacological mechanisms including 5 hydroxytryptamine
uptake inhibitors, cannabinoid CB1 agonists, carnitine acetyltransferase
stimulants, GABA receptor agonists, NMDA antagonist, opioid mu receptor
agonists, sodium channel antagonists, tumour necrosis factor alpha antagonists
and others of unidentified pharmacological activity. In contrast, only a few
molecules have been developed specifically for NP as a primary indication and
these include an aldose reductase inhibitor, a membrane integrity agonist and
an opioid kappa receptor agonist. However, the last ten years have seen
important advances in the understanding of peripheral neuropathy and
neuropathic pain at the biological and pathophysiological level and this is
reflected in the numbers of new candidates in the drug development pipeline.
Today, there are more than 40 drug types in development for the treatment of
PN or NP as primary indications, more than 30 of which are directed at new
drug targets. Whilst most of these are directed at NP, a number are targeting
the underlying disease mechanisms, offering the hope that NP disease
progression may be blocked or even reversed. The development and extension of
new and existing molecules for the treatment of NP and PN as second indication
drugs continues, and collectively these two groups (i.e. primary + secondary
indication drugs) represent over 60 different drug types. Recent patent
filings, 2002-2008, show a significant number of other therapeutic
opportunities which have not entered the drug development pipeline, but which
may do so in the future. This report identifies these candidates on the basis
of their mechanism of action, drug target, developmental stage, by company and
other relevant areas.
Background and Questions: PN and NP are causally linked to a number of
conditions including diabetes, auto immunity, infection, cancer, drugs or
toxins, the autonomic nervous system and hereditary diseases. It is estimated
in this report that PN and NP currently affect 170 to 270 million individuals
globally, figures that are set to increase by more than 10% by 2012. This
report discusses the major peripheral neuropathies as well as neuropathic
pain, together with prevalence, trends and treatments. Some of the questions
considered in this report include: i) which therapies are available for the
treatment of PN and NP, their capabilities and failings, unmet need ii) What
is happening in the developments pipeline, which candidates are nearest to
market iii) what are the prevalences of the major neuropathies and what are
the future anticipated trends iv) what strategies are being developed in the
treatment of PN and NP, prospects of success and failure v) which companies
are developing new therapies for PN and NP vi) what are the current market
sizes relating to PN and NP, including market sectors, sales and anticipated
growth over the next 5 years
View Cart
