The B-cell non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) treatment market value will experience moderate growth across six major markets (the US, France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the UK), from $4.59 billion in 2013 to $5.41 billion by 2018, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.

The company’s latest report states that the global NHL treatment paradigm will undergo a dramatic shift away from chemoimmunotherapy regimens with the launch of targeted B-cell receptor inhibitors, Imbruvica (ibrutinib) and Zydelig (idelalisib), in the relapsed/refractory setting across multiple indications.

Brooke Baker, Ph.D., GlobalData’s Senior Analyst covering Oncology and Hematology, says: “The US Food and Drug Administration gave the green light to Imbruvica for use in Rituxan-refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) patients in November 2013. Meanwhile, Zydelig recently received approval for the treatment of relapsed/refractory follicular lymphoma patients who have received at least two prior therapies.

“Imbruvica has set the bar for pricing in the NHL market with an annual cost of therapy (ACOT) calculated at approximately $133,000. On the other hand, Zydelig will be priced very competitively, at an average ACOT of around $87,000, in anticipation of its future combination with Roche’s Rituxan.”

GlobalData forecasts that Zydelig will emerge as the overall NHL treatment revenue leader across all indications, with total sales reaching $888 million in 2018. This will be primarily due to Imbruvica’s smaller target patient population, as MCL comprises approximately 6 per cent  of all NHL diagnoses only.

Baker explains: “From 2017, we anticipate that Zydelig will also be utilised in combination with Rituxan, and the potential to combine with the gold-standard backbone therapy will further drive the drug’s uptake in this setting.

“However, both Zydelig and Imbruvica’s opportunities for premium pricing will be limited in cost-conscious European countries, and this will limit revenue growth in these markets despite the strong uptake among patients.”

GlobalData predicts that the NHL treatment market in the five European countries will shrink from $1.66 billion to $1.53 billion over the forecast period, caused by authorities’ pricing limitations, as well as competition from generic bendamustine and biosimilar rituximab, beginning in 2014 and 2018, respectively.

OpportunityAnalyzer: Non-Hodgkin’s B-Cell Lymphoma: Opportunity Analysis and Forecast to 2018.