Biotech giant Pfizer has signed a deal with a migraine drug manufacturer
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) will partner with Biohaven Pharmaceutical to commercialize and distribute migraine medications outside the United States. The deal between Pfizer and Biohaven Pharmaceutical last month. Its value was five hundred million dollars ($150 million in cash and $350 million for a 3% stake in Biohaven) in exchange for the rights to commercialize two Biohaven migraine drugs outside the United States.
These drugs are Nurtec, which has already received approval, and the candidate’s trials are still ongoing. Under the agreement terms, Pfizer will also pay Biohaven royalties for Nurtec, expressed in double digits and up to $740 million, depending on future stages. Nortec is an advanced treatment for severe migraine. That migraine affects about 1 billion people worldwide, making it the third most common disease in the world. Specialists distinguish two types of migraines — acute (which lasts less than 14 days a month) and chronic (15 or more days a month).
The vast majority of patients (95%) experience acute migraine. In trials, patients taking 75 mg of Nurtec every other day decreased the number of days with migraine by 4.3 days. The baseline level was significantly higher than the 3.5-day reduction compared to baseline in placebo-treated patients.
In addition, 49.1% of the group participants had at least a 50% reduction in the number of days with moderate and severe migraines per month compared to 41.5% in the placebo group. GlobalData research company predicts that the global market for migraine medicines will grow by 10.3% per year, to $8.7 billion by 2026. Nortec’s ability to effectively treat/prevent migraines may lead to this medicine receiving about 20% of the global market.
Recall that we are talking exclusively about Nurtec, while the contract also includes the candidate’s commercialization (if approved). Even without considering the yet-to-be-approved candidate, Pfizer’s annual revenue from the sale of Nurtec could be about $300 million.
