Study confirms economic viability of orphan drugs

A new report from Thomson Reuters discusses the economic viability of developing drugs for rare diseases

The development of orphan drugs is a viable proposition for biopharmaceutical companies, a new report has claimed.

Thomson Reuters' latest study, entitled 'The Economic Power of Orphan Drugs', concluded that these medicines, which are developed to treat rare diseases, could actually generate as much lifetime revenue as drugs used for more common conditions.

According to the report, which is published in the journal Drug Discovery Today, orphan drugs generated more than $50 billion in revenue last year.

Despite the fact that the number of patients who benefit from orphan drugs is significantly lower than those using other medicines, they are economically viable thanks to a number of factors, including government incentives and high rates of regulatory success.

In addition, the clinical trials required to achieve marketing approval tend to be shorter than those for non-orphan drugs.

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