The competition among quadrivalent products is increasingly intensifying in the domestic influenza vaccine market.
In addition to six vaccine brands -- Fluarix Tetra by GSK, GC Fluquadribalant by Green Cross 녹십자, SKY Cellflu Quadrivalent by SK Chemical SK케미칼, BoryungⅴTetra Vaccine by Borung Biopharma보령바이오파마, Kovax flu 4ga PF by Korea Vaccine한국백신, and Teratect by Il-Yang Pharm 일양약품 –– that won approvals last year, three new products -- Vaxigriptetra by Sanofi-Pasteur사노피파스퇴르, Vaxiflu quadrivalent vaccine by Dong-A ST동아ST, and BoryungⅴTetra by Boryung Biopharma -- jumped into the fray this year.
Among them, Fluarix Tetra, which was the first quadrivalent influenza vaccine released in Korea, is leading the market.
Fluarix Tetra showed the cumulative market share of about 19 percent from last year to the first quarter of this year, based on the criteria of IMS data.
It remains to be seen, however, whether Fluarix Tetra can remain as the market leader because of the releases of its rival products, one after another.
GSK emphasizes Fluarix Tetra has proved its effectiveness for patients with chronic diseases, through clinical trials in people with diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
Fluarix Tetra has demonstrated the immunogenicity of 1.5 times higher than trivalent influenza vaccine in clinical trials, which included 1,573 people with chronic diseases.
Accumulated clinical experiences are its another advantage. As the first inactivated quadrivalent influenza vaccine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the maker has supplied more than 100 million doz. of Fluarix Tetra to about 160 countries
Major related organs, such as World Health Organization(WHO) and the Korean Society of Infectious Disease대한감염학회, are recommending quadrivalent influenza injection, which can prevent all four kinds of the virus -- two type A virus(H1N1, H3N2) and two type B virus (Yamagata and Victoria).
“Most Korean manufacturers and importers with licenses for trivalent influenza vaccines have won approvals for the quadrivalent vaccine, too,” said the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS)식약처 in its 2016 report on the state approvals, released in June. “As they are conducting or have finished clinical trials to add an indication for infants aged three or younger, we expect there will be a change in approval conditions to add these indications soon.”