Doxorubicin Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Doxorubicin Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The doxorubicin market is expected to record a CAGR of over 6.5% during the forecast period (2022-2027).

The outbreak of COVID-19 impacted every aspect of the healthcare industry, including the market for doxorubicin, with significant disruptions to businesses and economic activities worldwide. ​The COVID-19 pandemic affected healthcare systems globally, resulting in the interruption of usual care in many healthcare facilities and exposing vulnerable cancer patients to significant risks. For instance, the study titled ‘Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cancer Care: A Global Collaborative Study’, published in September 2020, reported that a total of 356 centers from 54 countries across six continents participated between April 21 and May 8, 2020. These centers serve 716,979 new cancer patients a year. Most of them (88.2%) reported facing challenges in delivering care during the pandemic. Although 55.34% reduced services as part of a preemptive strategy, other common reasons included an overwhelmed system (19.94%), lack of personal protective equipment (19.10%), staff shortage (17.98%), and restricted access to medications (9.83%). A study titled ‘Impact of COVID-19 on cancer care in India: a cohort study,’ published in 2021, collected data on new patient registrations, number of patients visiting outpatient clinics, hospital admissions, daycare admissions for chemotherapy, minor and major surgeries, patients accessing radiotherapy, and diagnostic tests. The study reported that the number of new patients registered decreased from 112,270 to 51,760, patients who had follow-up visits decreased from 634,745 to 340,984, hospital admissions decreased from 88,801 to 56,885, and outpatient chemotherapy decreased from 173,634 to 109,107 between March 1 and May 31, 2020. The data indicate that COVID-19 significantly impacted the doxorubicin market.

The market for doxorubicin is majorly driven by the rising cancer cases globally. For instance, according to GLOBOCAN 2020, around 19.3 million new cancer cases and 10 million cancer deaths were reported across the world, thus fueling the market’s growth.

In 2020, the World Health Organization reported that cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for nearly 10 million deaths. The most common cancers in 2020 (in terms of new cases of cancer) were breast (2.26 million cases); lung (2.21 million cases); colon and rectum (1.93 million cases); prostate (1.41 million cases); skin (non-melanoma) (1.20 million cases); and stomach (1.09 million cases).

Governments of different countries are taking several initiatives to spread awareness and introduce new therapy methods for cancer, which may boost the market’s growth over the forecast period. For instance, the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program, in 2020, provided funding, guidance, and technical assistance to help programs implement plans to prevent and control cancer, which may provide opportunities for key players to launch new products into the market and boost the market’s growth. Thus, the abovementioned factors are expected to boost the market significantly. However, side effects associated with doxorubicin are expected to restrain the market’s growth.

Although doxorubicin is used to treat several types of cancers, breast cancer is the most common cancer that can be treated with the same. According to data published by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in December 2020, breast cancer represents 1 in 4 cancers diagnosed among women globally.

According to an article published by the World Health Organization in April 2021, in 2020, there were 2.3 million women diagnosed with breast cancer and 685,000 deaths globally. By the end of 2020, there were 7.8 million women diagnosed with breast cancer in the past five years, making it the world’s most prevalent cancer. The American Cancer Institute stated that doxorubicin is used as a chemo drug during advanced breast cancer treatment.

The study titled "Controlled release of doxorubicin from polyethylene glycol functionalized melanin nanoparticles for breast cancer therapy: Part I. Production and drug release performance of the melanin nanoparticles," published in October 2019, suggests that the application area of melanin nanoparticles (MNPs) in controlled and prolonged drug release could be extended for treating breast cancer. Thus, growing R&D procedures for proving the efficacies of doxorubicin for treating breast cancer may drive the market.

Due to the rising burden of disease, many people are opting for this type of treatment, which may boost the market. Therefore, it is estimated that the breast cancer segment will show rapid growth over the forecast period.

North America is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period. The growing number of cancer cases and subsequently increasing usage of doxorubicin in mono and combination chemotherapies may impact the market. The increasing number of mergers and acquisitions and partnerships for clinical trials with technologically advanced doxorubicin formulations are the crucial factors driving the market in the North American region.

According to the American Cancer Society Inc., in 2021, there were an estimated 1.9 million new cancer cases and 608,570 cancer deaths in United States. This factor may drive the market during the forecast period.

According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, the elderly population is at high risk of getting affected by cancer. According to World Ageing Report 2019, the senior population is expected to increase from 53.340 million in 2019 to 83.813 million in 2050. Thus, the growing geriatric population may result in a high cancer incidence, contributing to the market’s growth.

New product launches in the country may also drive the market. For instance, in September 2020, Zydus Cadila received the final approval from the US FDA to market its generic Doxorubicin Hydrochloride Liposome injection, used for treating certain cancers, in United States. Thus, due to such factors, the market is expected to grow during the forecast period.

The market for doxorubicin consists of a few players, especially big pharmaceutical companies. Some major players include Cadila Pharmaceuticals, Cipla Limited, Pfizer Inc., and Johnson & Johnson (Janssen Pharmaceutical). With the growing focus on cancer reduction worldwide, more pharmaceutical companies are expected to penetrate the market in the future.

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