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AbbVie’s Humira held onto top spot despite biosimilar threat

by Ann M. Thayer
December 5, 2016 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 94, Issue 48

Top 10 products
A table on the top 10 products of 2016.
AbbVie’s Humira retained the top spot while Gilead’s sales of Harvoni faded.
Note: Estimated sales are based on company statements and C&EN calculations.

Among the top 10 pharmaceutical products in 2016, biologics beat out small molecules, and treatments for cancer and inflammation dominated the field. Holding the lead again was Humira, a monoclonal antibody targeting inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. At $16.1 billion in sales, Humira outpaced the next-best-selling drug by more than $6 billion.

In second place is Gilead Sciences’ hepatitis C drug Harvoni, which grew rapidly after launching in late 2014. Sales cooled considerably—but not unexpectedly—this year as successful treatment has led to a decline in the patient population.

Among the firms behind the top products, Roche stands out for having three. But its leading cancer biologics—as well as Humira, Remicade, and Enbrel— will face biosimilar competition.

DRUG NAME TYPE MARKETER INDICATION 2016 SALES
($ BILLIONS)
% CHANGE
FROM 2015
Humira Antibody AbbVie, Eisai Inflammation 16.1 13
Harvoni Small molecule Gilead Sciences Hepatitis C 9.9 -29
Enbrel Protein Amgen, Pfizer Inflammation 8.7 0
Remicade Antibody Janssen, Merck & Co. Inflammation 8.5 1
Rituxan Antibody Roche Cancer 7.4 4
Revlimid Small molecule Celgene Cancer 7.0 21
Herceptin Antibody Roche Cancer 6.9 5
Avastin Antibody Roche, Chugai Cancer 6.9 1
Lantus Peptide Sanofi Diabetes 6.2 -11
Januvia/Janumet Small molecule Merck & Co. Diabetes 6.1 2

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