Healthy Skepticism Library item: 19208

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: news

Silverman E
Which Oncology Meds Do Sales Reps Push The Most?
Pharmalot 2011 Feb 22
http://www.pharmalot.com/2011/02/which-sales-reps-rank-highest-with-oncologists/

Full text:

Oncology is a big market and getting bigger, of course, but which drugmaker ranks highest is most effective in reaching oncologists? A recent poll of 475 medical and hematological oncologists found that Novartis commands a leading 12.5 share of details, although its position slipped slightly from the previous year, while Roche jumped from 10 percent to 12 percent thanks to combining sales teams with Genentech.
Meanwhile, Sanofi-Aventis slid from 8 percent to about 6.5 percent thanks to looming patent expirations for Taxotere and Eloxatin, according to ImpactRx, a market research firm. In line with the results, Genentech tied with OSI Pharmaceuticals as the drugmaker with a top tier sales force, followed by Biogen Idec, Amgen, Eli Lilly and Celgene (here is the report).
For the second year in a row, the drug with the largest number of details was Lilly’s Alimta, which is used to treat advanced or metastatic nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) or malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). Roche and Genentech’s Avastin, which is approved to treat bowel, lung, brain and kidney cancers, again came in second, although the FDA wants to rescind the breast cancer indication, suggesting the detailing mix may change (back story). The figures, by the way, are through November 2010 and, please note, we have changed the headline that was published earlier.