Despite Generic Erosion of Key Brands, the Hospital-Acquired Gram Negative Infections...

Despite Generic Erosion of Key Brands, the Hospital-Acquired Gram Negative
Infections Drug Market Will Increase by $1 Billion from 2008 to 2018

Uptake of Novel Agents from Novexel, Johnson & Johnson and Wyeth Will Drive
Growth, According to a New Report from Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., June 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's
leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues,
finds that, despite generic erosion of key brands, the hospital-acquired
gram-negative infections drug market will increase by $1 billion from 2008 to
2018 in the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom
and Japan.

The new Pharmacor report entitled Gram Negative Infections finds that the
introduction and uptake of next-generation cephalosporins, carbapenems,
quinolones, and beta-lactam/beta-lactamase inhibitors, will be a significant
driver of market growth through 2018. Among these emerging therapies,
Novexel's NXL-104/ceftazidime, a novel beta-lactam/beta-lactamase inhibitor
agent, is positioned to offer the most significant advance in the treatment of
hospital-acquired gram-negative infections and will earn more than $250
million in sales in 2018. Additionally, the continued uptake of two recent
market entrants -- Johnson & Johnson's Doribax and, to a lesser extent,
Wyeth's Tygacil -- will also drive the market. Although these three agents and
several other emerging therapies will drive market growth, generic erosion of
key brands will temper overall market sales through 2018, according to the
report.

Generic erosion of top branded products such as piperacillin/tazobactam
(Wyeth's Zosyn/Tazocin), imipenem/cilastatin (Merck's Primaxin/Tienam),
meropenem (Cubist Pharmaceuticals/AstraZeneca's Merrem/Meronem) and
levofloxacin (Johnson & Johnson's Levaquin, Sanofi-Aventis's Tavanic and
Daiichi Sankyo's Cravit) will have the greatest impact on the market. In 2008,
these four products accounted for approximately 50 percent of the
hospital-acquired gram-negative infections market. The report forecasts that,
in 2018, generic erosion will reduce the combined sales of these agents to
approximately 25 percent of the market.

The report also finds that drug development for gram-negative infections has
been slow and overshadowed by interest and investment in developing novel
therapies for the more lucrative market of hospital-acquired infections due to
gram-positive pathogens, namely, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA). However, as competition increases and opportunities decline in the
market for hospital-acquired infections due to MRSA, the hospital-acquired
gram-negative infections market segment is ripe with attractive drug
development opportunities.

"Competition between agents is relatively low in the hospital-acquired
gram-negative infections market when compared with the market for
hospital-acquired infections due to gram-positive pathogens," said Decision
Resources Analyst Hemali Patel, Ph.D. "Minimal competition in the late-stage
pipeline and high unmet need will allow novel agents with clearly demonstrated
efficacy against key gram-negative pathogens to command a high price and
favorable formulary position -- two key attributes that underlie commercial
success in this market."

About Decision Resources
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clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets.
Decision Resources is a Decision Resources, Inc. company.

About Decision Resources, Inc.
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www.DecisionResourcesInc.com.

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For more information, contact:

Decision Resources Decision Resources, Inc.
Christopher Comfort Elizabeth Marshall
781-296-2597 781-296-2563
ccomfort@dresources.com emarshall@dresources.com

SOURCE Decision Resources

Christopher Comfort of Decision Resources, +1-781-296-2597,
ccomfort@dresources.com, or Elizabeth Marshall of Decision Resources, Inc.,
+1-781-296-2563, emarshall@dresources.com