My most recent blog post on the “Race for the Cure” For Myotonic Dystrophy drugs and a potential cure had stated that the market size that is reachable for this disease is between 2-5 Billion dollars. Today a recent Wall St. Journal Article “The Big Business of Orphan Drugs” confirms that the market for These type of Orphan Drugs is extremely lucrative for companies and patients alike. Read about Small is Lucrative for Drug Companies. The Wall St. Journal article of course is not available without a Subscription.
The Wall street journal reported that incentives from the FDA to develop so called orphan drugs can mean quicker and more certain approval, tax benefits for the developer, and seven years of protection from competition after approval. Orphan drugs are defined as experimental treatments for disease with fewer than 200,000 patients at one time.