MNC Drug Pipeline Showdown 2024: Roche Tops Again, Pfizer Rises to Second, Hengrui Makes Historic Top 10 Debut at #8

Jun 19, 2024 07:30 CST Updated 07:31

Seagen

Monoclonal Antibody Developer

Roche

Oncology Drug Research, Development, and Manufacturing

Pfizer

Pharmaceutical R&D Developer

Hengrui Pharma

Innovative and High-Quality Pharmaceutical Developer

At the beginning of 2024, a well-known institutionCitelineReleased "Pharma R&D Annual Review 2024》White Paper, provides an in-depth analysis of global pharmaceutical industry R&D trends, interpreting the challenges and opportunities faced by the industry.

This Heavyweight ReportThe content is very rich, recommended for industry friends to study and refer to carefully together.

Today, we focus onTop pharmas by 2024 Pipeline SizeFrom this perspective, let's take a look at how global pharmaceutical companies are strategically positioning themselves in the field of lung cancer treatments. What trends and highlights are worth noting?

Overall Trend

The R&D pipeline in the pharmaceutical industry continued to grow in 2024, with the total pipeline size reaching 22,825 drugs, representing a 7.20% increase from the previous year.

In 2024, the R&D pipeline of the pharmaceutical industry shows a positive trend of continuous growth. According to the "Pharma R&D Annual Review 2024" report, the total number of drugs in development worldwide reached 22,825, an increase of 7.20% compared to last year. This growth rate has risen from the previous year's 5.89%, indicating that the expansion speed of the industry is accelerating. Despite various challenges in clinical development, such as high R&D costs and declining return on investment, the pharmaceutical industry continues to demonstrate strong vitality and innovation capabilities.

Particularly in the field of oncology, new drug research and development activities still dominate, although their proportion in new drugs has slightly decreased from 40.7% in 2022 to 38.0%. Additionally, the rise of China's pharmaceutical companies cannot be ignored, with the strong growth of companies like Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. marking an increasing presence of China in the global pharmaceutical R&D landscape. Overall, the growth in the pharmaceutical industry’s R&D pipeline not only reflects the industry’s vibrancy but also signals potential future market trends and directions.

Leading Company

Roche tops the list for the second consecutive year with 218 drugs in the pipeline. Pfizer ranks second with 205 drugs, its pipeline size increased by 20% compared to last year, mainly due to its acquisition of Seagen (formerly Seattle Genetics) completed in December 2023.

In the pharmaceutical R&D field in 2024, Roche maintains its leading position in the industry with a robust pipeline, boasting 218 drugs under development, marking its second consecutive year at the top. Close behind is Pfizer, with a pipeline comprising 205 drugs, showing significant growth compared to last year. This rise is mainly attributed to the successful acquisition of Seagen, which has expanded its R&D capabilities in oncology.

Notably, Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., as the first Chinese pharmaceutical company to enter the top ten, ranked eighth with a pipeline of 147 drugs under development. This achievement not only reflects China's innovation capabilities in the biopharmaceutical field but also indicates that its competitiveness in the global pharmaceutical industry is steadily increasing.

Overall, the strong performance of leading companies not only drives the industry's R&D progress but also sets a benchmark for the entire pharmaceutical industry, encouraging more enterprises to increase R&D investment and promote the innovation and market launch of new drugs. The achievements and strategic layouts of these companies will undoubtedly have a profound impact on the development of the global pharmaceutical industry.

The Rise of Chinese Companies

Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. broke into the top ten for the first time, ranking eighth with 147 drugs. The size of its pipeline increased by 38.7%, and nearly 94% of the drugs were independently developed by the company.

In 2024, China's pharmaceutical companies made significant progress in the scale of their R&D pipelines. Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. ranked eighth globally for the first time with a pipeline of 147 drugs, marking the rapid rise of China's pharmaceutical industry and the enhancement of its international competitiveness. The company’s pipeline grew by 38.7%, and nearly 94% of its drugs were self-developed, the highest proportion among all companies, highlighting its strong capability in the research and development of original innovative medicines.

This achievement of China's pharmaceutical companies not only reflects the domestic emphasis and investment in biopharmaceutical R&D but also highlights the growing status of China in the global pharmaceutical R&D field. With strong government support for the pharmaceutical industry and the continuous enhancement of enterprises' own R&D capabilities, it is expected that Chinese pharmaceutical companies will play an increasingly important role in future drug development and market competition. Moreover, the rise of China’s pharmaceutical enterprises provides more treatment options for patients worldwide, contributing to the advancement of global healthcare.

Geographical Distribution

Although the United States remains the primary region for new drug development, China is rapidly catching up, with the number of new drugs increasing from 1,457 to 1,627 in 2023, while in the U.S., it increased from 1,840 to 1,856.

In 2024, the geographical distribution of global pharmaceutical R&D showed a significant eastward shift. While the United States remains the primary region for drug development, its share in the global R&D pipeline has decreased from 43% in 2023 to 39%. At the same time, China's drug R&D activities continue to grow, with its share in the global R&D pipeline increasing from 13% to 16%, reflecting China's rapid progress and growing influence in the pharmaceutical R&D field.

The proximity between the United States and China in the number of new drug developments indicates that the focus of global pharmaceutical R&D is gradually shifting towards the Asian region. China's R&D growth is not only reflected in quantity but also its quality and innovation capabilities have gained international recognition. Moreover, the increase in the number of drugs in China’s R&D pipeline also demonstrates the country’s emphasis on pharmaceutical innovation and its response to global health needs.

This shift in geographical distribution has profoundly impacted the competitive landscape and cooperation models of the global pharmaceutical industry. With the rise of Asian countries like China in pharmaceutical R&D, global pharmaceutical companies need to reassess their R&D strategies and explore collaboration opportunities with emerging R&D hubs to fully leverage global resources and accelerate the development of new drugs.

Research and Development Stage

Although the number of new drugs in the pipeline is increasing, most of them are still in the preclinical stage or early clinical trials. The growth of drugs entering Phase III clinical trials has slowed down, which could be a challenge for the industry.

2024 Pharmaceutical R&D Pipeline Data Shows Challenges Amid Growth

However, the number of drugs in Phase III clinical trials has grown relatively slowly, in contrast to the growth seen in Phase I and Phase II, indicating a high screening rate as drugs progress to Phase III. Phase III clinical trials represent the most expensive part of drug development, so an increase in the number of drugs in this phase is only meaningful if the industry can successfully bring more drugs to market. Data shows that the cost of drug development is rising year by year while the return on investment is declining, a trend that is clearly unsustainable.

Moreover, although the number of drugs in Phase III clinical trials increased in 2022 and 2023, the data for 2024 again shows signs of a slowdown in growth, which could be a concern for the industry. Each stage of drug development requires careful planning and management to ensure the health and sustainability of the R&D pipeline.

Investment and Return

Rising R&D costs and declining return on investment pose challenges to the sustainability of the pharmaceutical industry.

The pharmaceutical R&D industry in 2024 is facing dual pressures of increased investment and declining returns. As the cost of drug development continues to rise, particularly during Phase III clinical trials, pharmaceutical companies are ramping up their R&D investments. However, at the same time, the return on these investments has not grown in tandem but instead shown a declining trend. According to industry data, this contradictory phenomenon of rising costs and falling returns poses a challenge to the long-term sustainable development of the pharmaceutical industry.

In this context, pharmaceutical companies need to focus more on the efficiency and success rate of R&D to ensure that investments yield expected returns. This may mean more precise screening of promising drug candidates at an early stage, reducing resource waste caused by drug failures in later stages. At the same time, companies also need to explore new business models and collaboration methods to spread risks and improve the success rate of R&D.

In addition, the pharmaceutical industry also needs to pay attention to policy changes, market demand, and the global economic environment, as these factors may all affect the market acceptance and profitability of drugs. In balancing investment and returns, pharmaceutical companies must be more flexible and innovative to adapt to the ever-changing market environment, ensuring that R&D investments can bring innovative treatment options to patients while also delivering reasonable economic returns to the company.

Therapeutic Areas

Oncology remains a hot area of research and development in the therapeutic field, accounting for the majority of new drugs, although this proportion has slightly decreased from 40.7% in 2022 to 38.0%.

Trends in pharmaceutical R&D in 2024 show that oncology remains the hottest area of research and development, accounting for a significant proportion of the R&D pipeline. The report points out that the number of drugs under development in the field of oncology has reached 9,142, an increase of 7.8% compared to 8,480 last year. This growth rate is slightly higher than the expansion rate of the global R&D pipeline. This growth in oncology further solidifies its leading position in the R&D pipeline, and the rise in its proportion may put pressure on other therapeutic areas.

Although the oncology field dominates the majority of the R&D pipeline, other therapeutic areas have also shown positive growth. For instance, the neurological field has grown slightly above the average at 7.5%, while the alimentary/metabolic field has experienced particularly significant growth with a rate as high as 13.1%. Meanwhile, the growth of anti-infective drug development has almost stagnated, increasing by only 0.8%, which stands in sharp contrast to the temporary surge during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, the report emphasized the importance of R&D for rare disease drugs. Many large pharmaceutical companies have included drugs targeting rare diseases in their R&D pipelines. This is not only because of the profound impact of rare diseases on patients, but also due to the potential commercial returns that successful R&D of rare disease drugs may bring.

Overall, the distribution of therapeutic areas in pharmaceutical R&D reflects the diversity of current healthcare needs as well as the pharmaceutical industry's focus and investment in different disease areas. With the continuous advancement of R&D technologies and changes in market demand, it is expected that all therapeutic areas will continue to maintain active R&D activities in the future.

M&A Activities

M&A activity increased slightly in 2023, but had little overall impact on the Top 25 companies.

In 2023, M&A activities in the pharmaceutical industry saw a slight increase. However, overall, they did not significantly impact the rankings of leading companies in the industry. Nevertheless, some key M&A cases, such as Pfizer's acquisition of Seagen, had a direct positive impact on the company’s R&D pipeline, advancing its research progress in key therapeutic areas like oncology.

Overall, the number of M&A activities in 2023 slightly increased from 81 in 2022 to 88, indicating that the industry has entered a relatively calm period after experiencing large-scale M&A waves in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Although the M&A activities during this period have decreased, they may have had a profound impact on the industry structure and corporate strategies.

Moreover, M&A activities play a crucial role in the pharmaceutical industry, as they not only accelerate companies' R&D processes but also expand their market influence and product portfolios. However, large-scale M&A may also bring challenges and risks in integration. Therefore, pharmaceutical companies need to weigh the pros and cons when making M&A decisions to ensure that transactions add long-term value to the company’s development.

Despite an increase in M&A activities in 2023, the overall level remains low compared to previous years, possibly reflecting that the pharmaceutical industry is pursuing more prudent and selective growth strategies rather than blind expansion. As the industry evolves and the market changes, future M&A activities are expected to continue in a more cautious and targeted manner.

Small and Medium-sized Companies

Small and medium-sized companies play an important role in the R&D pipeline, especially those with only one or two drugs in development, which together account for more than 18% of the R&D pipeline.

In the pharmaceutical R&D sector in 2024, small and medium-sized companies have demonstrated remarkable vitality and innovative potential. According to the "Pharma R&D Annual Review 2024" report, these companies account for a significant proportion of the R&D pipeline, especially those with only one or two drugs in development. Collectively, they contribute over 18% of the drugs in the pipeline, a percentage that even surpasses the combined total of the top 10 or 25 largest companies.

These small and medium-sized companies, like "small raindrops" in the industry, may seem individually small in scale, but their collective contributions form a force that cannot be ignored within the sector. In 2023, 931 companies had only two drugs in development, while 2,249 companies had just one drug in development—both figures increased compared to the previous year. This indicates that although some companies may have been removed from the database due to mergers, closures, or temporary inactivity, more new companies are joining the ranks of drug development.

Small and medium-sized companies have seen a slight increase in their share of the R&D pipeline, which goes against the long-term trend showing a gradual decline in the share held by large pharmaceutical companies. The active participation of these companies not only brings diversity to the industry but also drives the development of innovative drugs, playing a crucial role in the drug R&D ecosystem. As these companies continue to emerge, they will keep providing new treatment options for patients worldwide and inject fresh vitality into the pharmaceutical industry.

Future Outlook

The 2024 outlook for the pharmaceutical R&D industry shows that, despite reaching a record high in the number of new drug developments, the sector is also facing a series of challenges and uncertainties. While the growth of the R&D pipeline demonstrates the industry's vitality, most drugs may ultimately fail to reach the market, raising concerns about capital investment and returns. Although the number of new drug launches has increased in recent years, the overall trend still requires further observation, especially considering the decline in success rates from Phase II to Phase III trials.

In addition, the pharmaceutical industry needs to address uncertainties in the global geopolitical landscape, all of which could indirectly impact the sector.

Despite this, the industry remains optimistic about the future. Some experts believe that 2024 could be a turning point for the biotech industry, with low valuations potentially sparking a wave of mergers and acquisitions, bringing new opportunities to the sector. Additionally, data on new drug launches is expected to continue growing from the 2023 figures, which may send more positive signals to the industry.

Overall, the pharmaceutical R&D industry will continue to face challenges in 2024, but there will also be opportunities for growth. The long-term trends and innovation capabilities of the industry will be key factors in determining future success.

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