New type 2 diabetes medicines to boost market in Southeast Asia

Late-stage pipeline products have the potential to change how type 2 diabetes is treated today, says GBI Research. The business intelligence firm forecasts that the Southeast Asian type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) market, covering South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia, will rise from US$1.7 billion in 2015 to US$2.7 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 7.1%.

Aswini Nath, Analyst for GBI Research, explains: “Unmet needs relating to patient convenience and ease of use will be addressed significantly over the forecast period. Higher levels of innovation are apparent in the early-stage pipeline, which may lead to considerable improvements beyond the existing range of products, in terms of safety and efficacy in the long term.

“In terms of recently approved therapeutics, GLP-1 receptor agonists, DPP-4 inhibitors, and SGLT-2 inhibitors* have already achieved strong market uptake and are all expected to increase their market shares over the forecast period. In comparison with many previously marketed therapies, these new products provide improved weight control and lowered hypoglycemia risk.”

The company named Novo Nordisk’s NN-9535 (semaglutide subcutaneous formulation) and OG-217SC (semaglutide oral formulation) and Eli Lilly’s Trulicity (dulaglutide), which are GLP-1 receptor agonists; as well as Merck’s ertugliflozin and Theracos's bexagliflozin, which are SGLT-2 inhibitors; and Merck’s omarigliptin, which is a DPP-4 inhibitor, as products close to commercialisation which "stand out as offering superior safety, efficacy, and patient compliance".

Of these products, GBI Research believes that OG-217SC, being a first-to-market oral formulation in the GLP-1 agonist class of drug, has the most potential to change the treatment paradigm due to its improved administration route compared to other drugs in the same class.

However, Nath added that popular treatment metformin (Glucophage) will continue to dominate treatment options. “Although increased uptake of branded drugs is expected, metformin – a low-cost generic drug – will maintain its pivotal role in the T2DM treatment algorithm in Southeast Asia. Due to its well-characterised safety and efficacy profiles, wide availability and low cost, metformin will continue to be prescribed as the first-line pharmacotherapy and also remain the favored option for use in combination therapies,” he said.


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Buy Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Therapeutics in South-East Asia Markets to 2022 – Increasing Usage of Newer Therapies and Expanding Treatment Population to Encourage Robust Growth

*GLP-1 stands for glucagon-like peptide-1 and DPP-4 is short for dipeptidyl peptidase 4. Both GLP-1 receptor agonists improve glycemic control while reducing body weight while DPP-4 improves glycemic control. Both also improve systolic blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes. Read more about GLP-1 receptor agonists in Diabetes Care.

SGLT-2 or sodium-glucose linked transporter refers to the SGLT for the proximal convoluted tubule, a part of the kidney system, as opposed to SGLT-1, which affects the proximal straight tubule. Read more about SGLT-2 inhibitors in Diabetes Care.

More non-drug trreatments used to address depression

While depression is on the rise, the global drug market is seeing a decline as sufferers turn to alternative treatments, says research firm Technavio.

Its report on the global depression drugs market forecasts a CAGR of -6.64% from 2015 to 2019. "The prevalence of depression has become very high because of factors like genetic vulnerability, lack of proper diagnosis and treatment and a high degree of association with other disorders like diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular diseases,” says Faisal Ghaus, Vice President of Technavio. 

"Many patients are opting for complementary and alternative medicines, in combination with conventional treatments. These therapies can include relaxation techniques, massage, meditation, counseling, and art therapy. Homeopathic and naturopathic medicines have also been found to be helpful in treating depression. These effective alternatives are expected to erode the market share of drugs currently being used for the treatment of depression over the projected period.” 

More effective asthma treatment with an anti-malarial drug

Asthma may soon be controlled more effectively thanks to a pharmacological discovery by researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS).

The team, led by Associate Professor Fred Wong from the Department of Pharmacology at the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, together with Dr Eugene Ho, a recent PhD graduate from the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at NUS, have discovered that artesunate, a herbal-based anti-malarial drug, can be used to control asthma with better results than other drugs currently available.

The team revealed that artesunate can produce effects similar to those by dexamethasone, the most potent steroid remedy currently available, but with fewer side effects. As long term usage of steroids have many potential negative side effects, artesunate may be a safer alternative for asthmathic patients. The discovery was published in the journal Metabolomics on 16 July 2014. Artesunate had not been linked with asthma prior to this research.

Moving forward, the team led by Assoc Prof Wong will further explore the therapeutic and pharmacological effects of artesunate for asthma, as well as for other medical conditions. They also intend to work with industry partners to test the effects of artesunate on asthmatic patients.

Dr Ho is also furthering his research as a Research Fellow at the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at NUS, where he hopes to discover more beneficial effects of artesunate and accelerate the adoption of this drug for clinical tests.

Artesunate is made from artemisinin (青蒿素) which is from the plant Artemisia annua, or sweet wormwood. On August 12, Sanofi and Path announced that it is now shipping synthetic artemisinin-derived drugs for malaria at a large scale, paving the way for a form of artesunate that may be available in bigger quantities and more cheaply than previously possible.