Liver Cancer Drugs Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Therapeutic Class (Targeted Therapy, Immunotherapy), By Country (U.S., Japan, U.K., Germany, Spain, Italy, France), And Segment Forecasts, 2016 - 2022

Industry Outlook

The global liver cancer drugs market size was valued at USD 424 million in 2016. It is expected to progress at a CAGR of 19.4% during the forecast period. The U.S. spearheaded the market among seven major countries. The availability of novel drugs, the presence of strong pipeline, and rising public awareness are among the key trends escalating market growth. Besides this, growing incidence of liver cancer due to increasing geriatric population and unorganized lifestyle is estimated to provide a fillip to the market.

Liver cancer is the fifth most prevalent cancer across the globe and accounts for 9.0% of all cancer deaths. In 2012, 782,451 new cases of liver cancer were diagnosed, and 745,533 deaths were reported due to liver cancer. Primary liver cancer remains an important public health issue due to its extremely aggressive nature and poor survival rate.

Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) accounts for majority (75–90%) of primary liver cancers. A significant number of etiological factors of liver cancer, including hepatitis infection and cirrhosis, are modifiable and present a strong prospect to reduce its incidence and mortality by preventive strategies such as lifestyle modification and hepatitis immunization.

North America and Southern Europe have the highest incidence of mortality ratios for liver cancer. Incidence rates varied geographically, with the highest incidence rates for males recorded in Eastern Asia (31.9 per 100,000) and South-Eastern Asia (22.2 per 100,000). The highest incidence rates for females were reported in Eastern Asia (10.2 per 100,000) and Western Africa (8.1 per 100,000).

Therapeutic/Drugs Class Insights

The optimal treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is partial surgical resection, if patients have an adequate hepatic function reserve. Resection of cirrhotic livers can increase risk of fatal complications such as liver failure. Over the last few decades, five-year survival rates after resection have improved immensely and can now surpass 50%. However, relapse rates after surgical resection are very high. As most systemic drugs have minimal efficacy in the treatment of HCC, research and development is primarily focused on the molecular pathways involved in hepatocarcinogenesis. Nexavar is the only targeted therapy approved as frontline treatment for advanced HCC patients.

Treatment landscape for patients with HCC has undergone multiple changes in the past years, starting with approval of multi-kinase inhibitor, Stivarga (regorafenib), in the second-line setting following Nexavar treatment in April 2017. Similarly, PD-1 inhibitor, Opdivo (nivolumab), was approved as a second-line therapy in September 2017, based on data from the Phase I/II CheckMate-040 study. Combination regimens, specifically those including PD-1 inhibitors, will be introduced in the first-line setting to target major unmet needs, including overcoming tumour resistance, improving progression free survival, and maintaining quality of life.

Pipeline Insights

As most systemic drugs have no efficacy in the treatment of Liver cancer, research and development is primarily focused on molecular pathways involved in hepatocarcinogenesis. The future of the liver cancer treatment market has a high probability of gaining an array of novel therapies, with multiple first-in-class developments in each major target family, broadening the scope of potential benefits for patients. Some prominent players reviewed in the report are AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, Exelixis, Merck, and SillaJen.

Small molecules constituted the largest group of product candidates in development and licensing deals, followed by monoclonal antibodies. A large portion of pipeline candidates target dysfunctional signaling pathway components. Innovative treatment methodologies such as oncolytic viruses or RNA interference (RNAi) technology have gained significant traction in the field.

Country Insights

The U.S. dominated the liver cancer therapeutics market in 2016, followed by Japan. New product launches, surging adoption of novel therapeutics, and the presence of a large target population are some of the factors driving the market in the country.

China is a promising destination for industry participants, offering strong opportunity for market expansion. Primary liver cancer is the second most prevalent malignancy in China and currently results in 360,000 incident cases and 350,000 deaths a year. Presence of a wide base of target population and strong unmet clinical needs providing a significant push to the liver cancer therapeutics market in the country.

Liver Cancer Drugs Market Share Insights

Some of the key players operating in this industry are Bayer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eisai, Exelixis, and Merck. The companies are focusing on product development through clinical collaborations and business expansion in emerging markets.

Bayer will retain market leadership by 2022, supported by approvals of Stivarga as second-line treatment. Bayer’s Nexavar will lose U.S. patent exclusivity in 2020 and consequent sales erosion will reflect in the decline of Bayer’s market share by 2022. Stivarga is anticipated to become standard of care as second-line treatment for Nexavar tolerant patients, whose cancer progressed post-treatment and are still fit for systemic therapy.

Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global & country levels and provides an analysis of the market trends in each of the sub-segments from 2016 to 2022. For the purpose of this report, Grand View Research has segmented the global liver cancer drugs market report on the basis of therapeutic class and country:

• Therapeutic Class Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2022)

  • Targeted Therapy

  • Immunotherapy

• Country Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2022)

  • The U.S.

  • The U.K.

  • France

  • Germany

  • Italy

  • Spain

  • Japan