Novel Drug Launches by Key Players during the Covid-19 Pandemic to Aid Global Antiviral Therapies Market to Reach Newer Heights

Antiviral therapies involve the usage of drugs for treating diseases caused by viruses only. Most antiviral therapies target specific viruses, but a broad-spectrum antiviral is effective against several viruses. Antiviral drugs inhibit the development of the viruses instead of eliminating them. Antiviral drugs are capable of entering infected cells of the human body and act against the virus and prevent the disease from spreading. Some of the common drugs used in antiviral therapies are amantadine, zanamivir, rimantadine, oseltamivir, ribavirin, and peramivir. 

Forecast Analysis of Antiviral Therapies Market

The antiviral therapies market is predicted to grow significantly in the upcoming years due to the augmented usage of antiviral drugs and high rate of viral infections prevailing in today’s time. For instance, according to an article published on WHO (World Health Organization) website, there are almost 390 million cases of dengue infections per year. In addition, the dengue cases reported to WHO seem to have enhanced over eight-fold from the last two decades, from 505,430 patients in 2000 to 2.4 million in 2010, followed by 4.2 million in 2019. Many other viral infections such as HIV or Hepatitis C too have risen in the recent years. These factors pave way for antiviral therapies at a higher rate, thus increasing the global market share.

In another study conducted by CDC (Center for Disease Control), approximately 13.1 million were infected with flu in 2019 and antiviral drugs have proven to be useful in curing 90% of the people infected with the flu. Such examples directly indicate that the antiviral therapies market is expected to boost in the recent years. However, the lengthy process of preparing antiviral drugs and cost associated with it is anticipated to restrain the market growth in the upcoming years. On the other hand, utilization of nanotechnology in the development of cost effective and efficient drugs is likely to create opportunities for the market in the upcoming years. According to a newest report published by Research Dive, the global antiviral therapies market is expected to upsurge with a healthy CAGR of 3.1% from 2020 to 2027. Furthermore, the North American market is projected to witness rapid growth in the recent years due to a substantial rise in the geriatric population. 

Latest Developments of the Antiviral Therapies Market

The leading players of the global antiviral therapies market are basically opting for out of the box strategies such as mergers & acquisitions, new product announcements, building product portfolios, fund raising for developments, and financing in research & development projects. These strategies are helping the companies in gaining edge in the global market. 

In October 2020, the FDA (U.S. Food and Drugs Administration) approved an antiviral drug called as Veklury (remdesivir) which is developed by Gilead Sciences, Inc., a biotechnology company. This drug helps in the treatment of hospitalized Covid-19 patients by stopping the replication of SARS-CoV-2 virus. This drug is the first of its kind that has been approved by the FDA in the United States of America. 

In August 2020, Abbott, a medical device company, revealed a new antiviral drug - ‘Favipiravir’ which has been approved under the emergency conditions of Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, Abbott has also launched two tests, namely, SARS-CoV-2 EUA test for infectious diseases and Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG test for large-scale antibody testing. 

In August 2020, Dr. Reddy’s laboratories, a generic drug maker, launched the antiviral drug Avigan (favipiravir) which is manufactured by Fujifilm Toyama Chemical Co, a pharmaceutical company, for the treatment of mild to moderate Covid-19 disease. 

In July 2020, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, a research based global pharmaceutical company, has launched an antiviral drug named Favipiravir under the brand name ‘FabiFlu’ for the treatment of mild to moderate Covid-19 infection. 

Covid-19 Impact on the Antiviral Therapies Market

The global antiviral therapies market is estimated to enhance significantly during the Covid-19 pandemic due to rise in usage of antiviral drugs for treating Covid-19 patients. Moreover, the growth is also attributed to increase in research & development activities for producing a suitable medicine for the treatment of coronavirus disease. For instance, in January 2020, Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc. a healthcare products company launched a project for responding against the Covid-19 pandemic. Under this project, the company is developing a vaccine candidate to tackle 2019-nCoV and also partnering with other key players for screening the antiviral therapies library. 

Future Scope of the Market

The antiviral therapies market has reached a significant height due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 disease. This upsurge in the market is anticipated to linger for a long time in the forthcoming years due to prevalence of other viral infections such as HIV or dengue. This market has tremendous scope in the future as the viruses will probably never stop attacking the human race.