Invincible Diabetes Turns APAC Into Pharma Goldmine“?

There are over 235 million diabetic patients in Asia. China and India account for almost half of the world’s diabetic population. By 2030, without intervention, both China and India combined will have nearly half a billion diabetics. These are grim figures but for pharma firms, they represent a huge opportunity, and big pharma firms are spending billions in search of the next blockbuster drug for diabetes, according to the estimates from Singapore-based Asian Diabetes Prevention Initiative (ADPI). The diabetes care drugs market is highly fragmented in Asia Pacific (APAC) region with a few major manufacturers gaining presence in major countries of the APAC market, while the remaining market comprises other local or region specific manufacturers. Mergers and acquisitions that happened between players in the recent past helped companies strengthen their market presence, as well as drive innovations, helping the diabetes drugs market to increase in the APAC region. Let’s look at who owns the more significant piece of the pie and the competitive landscape of diabetes treatment in the region.

- Ayesha Siddiqui

On October 10, 2022, Chinese firm Hua Medicines snagged the first-in-class nod in China for a diabetes drug Dorzagliatin, a glucokinase activator (GKA). This ends a 10 year drought in type 2 diabetes in terms of lack of ‘medicines with new mechanisms of action’ entering the market. This is welcome news for the region which has 60 per cent of diabetics in the world. It is no wonder then that the largest number of ongoing clinical trials for type 2 diabetes are conducted in the region, with 665 ongoing clinical trials.

Over the past few decades, Asian countries have witnessed a rapid increase in diabetes patients, especially those with type 2 diabetes. The APAC is anticipated to experience considerable growth due to a more geriatric population and rising prevalence of diabetes mainly due to the enhanced stress level, sedentary lifestyles, smoking, and excessive consumption of alcohol that elevates the body’s sugar levels have led to the growth of the market, according to a Mordor Intelligence report.

Moreover, the production basis of certain antidiabetic drug companies in the region also boosted the market growth. However, the increasingly high cost of drugs is considered one of the major restraining factors for the market. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) iLibrary in APAC, about 227 million people live with type 2 diabetes and about half of them are undiagnosed and unaware of developing long-term complications. Also, according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) data, 90 million adults in the age group of 20-79 are living with diabetes in the SouthEast Asia (SEA) Region in 2021 which is projected to increase to 113 million by 2030 and 152 million by 2045.