Trinity Life Sciences Evaluates Commercial Performance Over 3 Years of 58 Novel Drugs Approved in 2020

Trinity Life Sciences, a leader in global life sciences commercialization solutions, announces the availability of its Trinity Annual Drug Index white paper, an evaluation of the commercial performances over three years of 58 novel drugs approved in 2020. An upcoming webinar Learn From the Past ? Launch Better Tomorrow will help companies apply learnings from these past launches to inform their commercialization strategies.

This year's report, the sixth in Trinity's Drug Index series, outlines key themes and emerging trends as the life sciences industry moves towards a new world of targeted and innovative products. Scoring is based on a combination of commercial, therapeutic/clinical and R&D factors. The Drug Index also provides a deeper look into several drugs approved in 2020 with outstanding commercial performance, along with learnings from these launches.

The report reveals that the COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the commercial performance of drugs launched in 2020, particularly intravenous products, due to shifts in priorities, supply chain disruptions, clinical trial delays and changes in healthcare utilization patterns. However, drugs that provided significant value propositions and addressed high unmet needs were able to perform well commercially.

Oncology and Neurology were the leading therapeutic indications in 2020. These indications continue to command a greater proportion of approved therapies, collectively increasing from ~34% of new approvals in 2017 to ~45% in 2020. The number of Oncology approvals saw a return to "normalcy" in 2020 after experiencing a decline in 2019.

According to the Drug Index, companies that launched their first products continue to struggle to meet forecast expectations. None of the "first launch" products in 2020 surpassed their forecast expectations, while ~50% significantly underperformed (achieving <32% of forecast expectations). Small-to-mid cap (SMID) companies, Horizon Therapeutics and Biohaven, were able to achieve the top two highest cumulative U.S. sales two years post-launch with their innovative products, despite historically lower success rates for SMID companies compared to large pharma. This resulted in both companies being acquired in 2022.

"It's a new era in the industry post-COVID, and we're optimistic about the continued growth in drug approvals and the innovations to come," said Leslie Orne, President and CEO of Trinity Life Sciences. "Looking at how drug launches succeeded, flailed or failed gives us a great deal of predictive power to determine future launches. Our Drug Index is an important paper for the life sciences industry to digest and understand."

Looking ahead to the next Trinity Annual Drug Index, the 2021 launch class included a combined 59 novel drug and biological license application approvals. A few notable approvals include the first mRNA COVID vaccine, the first Kirsten rat sarcoma virus oncogene (KRAS) inhibitor for Oncology and the first targeted therapy for Alzheimer's.

Life sciences executives are welcome to download the Trinity Annual Drug Index white paper by clicking here.

Life sciences executives can register for the webinar Learn From the Past ? Launch Better Tomorrow to be held on February 28 for the U.S. and February 29 for the EU by clicking here.

Members of the media can contact Elizabeth Marshall for the white paper and a link to the webinar at [email protected].

About Trinity Life Sciences

Trinity Life Sciences is a trusted strategic commercialization partner, providing evidence-based solutions for the life sciences industry. With over 25 years of experience, Trinity is committed to revolutionizing the commercial model by providing exceptional levels of service, powerful tools and data-driven insights. Trinity's range of products and solutions includes industry-leading benchmarking solutions, powered by TGaS Advisors. To learn more about how Trinity is elevating life sciences and driving evidence to action, visit trinitylifesciences.com.