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Before the spread of COVID-19, the global vaccines market size was worth USD 41.6 billion in 2018 and was projected to grow at a CAGR of 10.7% in the 2019-2026 period. The exponential rise in the number of global COVID-19 cases and deaths since the early outbreak of the infection in China has made it critical to develop a treatment of vaccine against the novel coronavirus. The sheer scale of this epidemic, with over 2.3 million cases and around 156,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19 as of 18th April provides an opportunity for a vaccine against the virus to reach blockbuster potential. Every announcement of a vaccine candidate entering a trial or partnership between companies to focus on development of the vaccines generates hope as countries have resorted to drastic measures such as social isolation to control the pandemic.
Based on data published by World Health Organization (WHO), there were around 70 vaccine candidates under development as of 11th April. One of the most promising candidates is Moderna Therapeutics’ mRNA vaccine, which got an unprecedented regulatory approval to skip animal testing. As part of an early stage clinical trial, the company tested the vaccine candidate against the novel coronavirus on the first patient on March 17th.
There are three other vaccine candidates, which have reached the stage of human trials and can be considered as the frontrunners in the race to develop a vaccine against this outbreak.
The technology platforms of pipeline candidates for COVID-19 vaccine are diverse and include conventional approaches such as live attenuated virus, inactivated virus, and viral vectors as well as next-generation technologies such as nucleic acid, virus-like particles, and recombinant protein.
“Large Number of Initiatives to Accelerate the Development of COVID-19 Vaccine”
There is a growing level of public-private partnership worldwide to assist in speeding up the development of a vaccine against COVID-19.
In latest news, Moderna has received USD 483 million from Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to assist in the development of the vaccine. The company is aiming to commence Phase 2 study in the second quarter of 2020. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has entered into a partnership with 16 pharmaceutical companies under the Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines initiative to find either a treatment or vaccine to end the pandemic.
Regulatory changes are being undertaken to speed up the development of COVID-19 vaccines. Moderna Therapeutics started human trials in March after an unprecedented regulatory approval to skip animal trials.
“Development of an Affordable Treatment against the Disease Could Dampen the Demand for COVID-19 Vaccine”
A significant level of activity is also happening in finding a treatment for the infection caused by COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine, which was found to be effective against coronavirus, is being considered as one of the most promising drug candidates. Major pharmaceutical companies have started evaluating the efficacy of their drugs, which have been used in treatment of other conditions, as a potential cure for COVID-19.
If a treatment against COVID-19 is found before the development of a vaccine, it is expected to affect the demand for vaccines considerably and affect the COVID-19 vaccine-addressable market growth. The impact will be more severe if the treatment is an affordable one or is covered by the respective governments of the affected countries. For example, the cost of treatment of the disease with the help of Hydroxychloroquine is expected to be very low.
GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Merck, and Sanofi account for around 80-85% of the vaccines market share. All these players have already entered the race to develop a vaccine to prevent infections from the novel coronavirus. There are a large number of smaller companies, including the ones based in China, which have potential vaccine candidates under development.
North America accounted for around 53% of the global vaccines market share in 2018. The addressable market by region for the COVID-19 vaccine will depend on various factors such as the extent to which countries have been impacted by the epidemic, quality of health system, level of economic development, support provided by the government to drive the coverage of the vaccine, and price of the vaccine along with the availability of a treatment. As of 18th April, the U.S. has been the most affected country due to the pandemic with over 715,000 cases and continuous rise in cases will enable the region to dominate the COVID-19 vaccine-addressable market share. USA is followed by Spain, Italy, France, Germany, United Kingdom, China, Turkey, Iran, and Belgium based on the number of cases.
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