Revlimid generic to launch in March; decoding what it means for key players

Indian companies launch drugs in the US every day, so why is the launch of Revlimid generic important? Because Revlimid which was approved in 2005 and used to treat blood cancers such as multiple myeloma and is one of the top five pharma drugs sold globally joining the ranks of AbbVie's immunology drug Humira and Merck's oncology drug Keytruda.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Nithya Balasubramanian, director of Sanford Bernstein and Vishal Manchanda, pharma analyst at Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities spoke at length about the importance of the launch of Revlimid generic drug.

First up, Balasubramanian said, “Among the companies that I cover, it is meaningful for Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL), Cipla. However, Dr Reddy’s also has the first to file exclusivity in two of the smaller strengths. Out of the USD 8.2-8.3 billion, about USD 7.5 billion is in the larger strengths where Natco has first to file exclusivity; they garner about USD 500-600 million sales in the US which is where Dr Reddy’s has exclusivity. Therefore, we think Dr Reddy’s stands to make slightly higher money than some of the other competitors in the fray. So material for Dr Reddy’s for sure and then Cipla.”

Meanwhile, Manchanda said, “Dr Reddy’s and Natco would benefit the most followed by Cipla. I think it’s the chronology of settlement that we have to go by in terms of materiality on the opportunity.”

For the entire discussion, watch the accompanying video