Mylan Laboratories, the India-based subsidiary of the one of the world’s leading generic and speciality pharmaceutical companies Mylan Inc., has a dual focus in its anti-retroviral therapy (ART) drug marketing strategy. In its first approach, the company is having advanced discussions with the government of India to adopt the single dose three drug regime into national HIV treatment. The three drugs tenofovir, lamivudine and efavirenz which is a once-a-day dose not only provide  a reduced pill burden but considerable convenience to  patients. It is also the global standard of care and Mylan is confident that the government could adopt this format of treatment for the July 2013 tender.

The second approach for Mylan is to build a strong private market business with its portfolio of 42 ART drugs of which 18 are in available in India. This is the only way to ensure sustainable growth and be able to make a dent in the Indian ART market valued at Rs. 150 crore growing at 12 per cent annually which already has a presence of Cipla, Ranbaxy, Hetero Drugs and Aurobindo Pharma, Anirudh Deshpande, Head of Emerging Markets & Exports, Mylan told Pharmabiz in an interaction.

“We have a plan in place and the big advantage is that Mylan is already a leading player in the Access Markets of Africa, Asia, Latin and Central America. Globally there are 33 million infected by this deadly virus with only eight million patients having access to drugs. This is a clear indication of the promising prospects for us,” he added.

India accounts for 2.39 million cases and is reported to be the third largest HIV population in the world. The Union government is extending treatment to more than five lakh HIV positive people from 355 ART centres across India and the estimated ART coverage here is 34 per cent as against global average of 47 per cent. However, over 60 per cent require ART. Now a broad basket of anti-retroviral therapies for HIV management is more accessible for Indian patients, said Despande.

The Indian market is important. In fact it was in 2007 after it acquired a controlling stake in the Hyderabad-based Matrix Labs that it identified India as a key growth market going by the HIV patient pool. The company also has its manufacturing and R&D in India with 8,000 personnel out of the 18,000 global workforce. Its two facilities at Nasik and Aurangabad have a capacity to produce 10 million doses of ART drugs. In August this year, the company went to launch a dedicated HIV business division only to tackle the gaps in treatment and initiate scale up interventions.

Studies have now shown that early detection of HIV and initiation of treatment reduces transmission rates. “To make the best out of the situation, Mylan has chalked out a three pronged strategy under its Antiretroviral Franchise which covers Test & Treat, capacity expansion by  increasing the number of doctors to access HIV infected patients and ensure committed  patient participation in treatment regime. We will also work to build the Access Markets with third party intervention which could either be through government or non-governmental organizations,” said Deshpande who has been responsible for the management of Mylan’s business in South Africa, Commercial Operations in India and export markets of Middle East.