Immunology and Biotherapies

Abstract

A review of the best selling monoclonal antibodies in 2013 and 2012 is provided. Humira with sales of over $11 billion ($9.3 billion in 2012) remains the best selling monoclonal antibody, biologic as well prescription drug brand in 2013 as in 2012. The ranks of the next 4 top selling mabs remained unchanged from the 2012 Table.  Remicade (9.7 Bn), Rituxan (7.5 Bn) , Herceptin (6.5 Bn) and Avastin (6.5 Bn) were the second, third, fourth and fifth top selling mabs in 2013. The actual sales for 2013 as reported by the companies are provided. The total sales of the top selling blockbuster mabs were $63 billion in 2013. The actual global sales of all the approved blockbuster sales or potential (sales >1 billion) monoclonal antibodies in 2013 is provided. Besides the top 5 mabs, there were 2 other monoclonal antibodies with sales of over 2 billion dollars and 5 with sales of over $ 1 billion in 2013. In addition 5 recently launched mabs were nearing to reach sales of $ 1 billion this year. Currently 30 monoclonal antibodies are marketed in the US and Europe (January 2014).  Alexion Soliris was the most expansive marketed monoclonal antibody with a price tag of $440,000 per year of treatment, a sort of Rolls-Royce of mabs.

PSMA ADC is fully human IgG1 antibody designed to delivers the chemotherapeutic drug selectively to prostate cancer cells. It does so by targeting the three-dimensional structure of the prostate specific membrane antigen or PSMA, a protein that is a clinically validated biomarker of prostate cancer and which is overexpressed on the surface of prostate cancer cells.

The PSMA antibody is linked to the chemotherapeutic microtubule disrupting agent monomethyl auristatin E (MMAE), which inhibits cell proliferation by disrupting the cellular “backbone” required for replication. The resultant antibody-drug conjugate attaches itself to the PSMA-protein on the surface of prostate cancer cells and is designed to internalize into the cancer cell, release the active anti-cancer drug, and destroy the malignant cell.