Release issued 21st August 2008

Personalized medicine has the potential for good and bad,
according to a new report from Decision Resources

August 21, 2008-Waltham, Mass.-Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that opportunities abound to improve the market prospects for drugs and reverse the pharmaceutical industry's decade-long productivity and performance slide. With pharmacogenomics technology and personalized medicine development, pharma companies can produce a new generation of targeted therapies that impact their bottom line.

Drugs such as Genentech/Roche's Herceptin and Novartis's Gleevec have demonstrated the success of targeted therapies from both a scientific and a business standpoint. Both drugs are mega-blockbusters; in 2007, sales of Herceptin totaled $4.05 billion and sales of Gleevec, $3.05 billion. Despite these early successes, the development of targeted medicines and the translation of pharmacogenomics-based testing into medical practice have been slower than anticipated, and the promise of personalized medicine is still largely to be realized.

"The secret to getting ahead with pharmacogenomics-based drug development comes from a new mindset in the pharmaceutical industry," said Lulu Pickering, Ph.D., analyst in the Spectrum executive advisory service at Decision Resources. "Nichebusters also make good business sense, and a good return on investment can indeed be obtained from value-added drugs."

The new Decision Resources Personalized Medicine Series suggests that personalized medicine not only has the potential for good: directing the right drug to the right patient to enhance therapeutic outcome and to prevent some patients from being harmed by drug treatment, but it also has the potential for harm: upsetting the way pharmaceutical companies have long done business and tampering with the industry's sacred cow-the blockbuster model of drug development.

"The blockbuster model of drug development is, of course, still relevant to the pharmaceutical industry," stated Dr. Pickering. "At the same time, however, companies must adopt technologies and new business strategies that will enable them to develop better drugs-value-added drugs-that can command the prices capable of providing an acceptable return on investment for the companies that develop them."

About Decision Resources' Spectrum Personalized Medicine Series

Is the traditional blockbuster model still viable? Although no clear answer has emerged, a new paradigm-personalized medicine-has been proposed. Personalized medicine requires finding the right medicine for the right person at the right time, and represents a major shift in medical approaches and business models across therapeutic areas. Decision Resources' Spectrum Personalized Medicine Series explores key trends, drug and diagnostic technologies, players and strategies and provides strategic insight that will help you successfully navigate this paradigm shift.

The Spectrum Personalized Medicine Series 2008 titles include:

• How to Get Ahead with Pharmacogenomics
• How to Integrate Personalized Medicine into Business Strategies
• Enabling the Path to Personalized Medicine
• Licensing Strategies in the Age of Personalized Medicine
• Biomarker Opportunities for Novel Targeted Cancer Therapies
• Blood Biomarkers and Beyond: Biomarker and Diagnostic Opportunities in Cardiovascular Disease
• Emerging Diagnostic Technologies for Use in Psychiatric Indications
• The Landscape of Companion Diagnostics: Challenges, Opportunities, and Future Trends

 About Decision Resources

Decision Resources (www.decisionresources.com) is a world leader in market research publications, advisory services and consulting designed to help clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets. Decision Resources is a Decision Resources, Inc. company.

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