The pharmaceutical industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by the evolution of new treatment paradigms, the gravity of unmet medical needs, as well as the growing importance of technologies such as pharmacogenomics, digital therapeutics, and artificial intelligence. In the last three years alone, there have been over 633,000 patents filed and granted in the pharmaceutical industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Immuno-oncology in Pharmaceuticals: Antibody drug conjugates(ADC) cancer therapy. Buy the report here.

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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 756,000 patents to analyse innovation intensity for the pharmaceutical industry, there are 110 innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Antibody drug conjugates (ADC) cancer therapy are a key innovation area in immuno-oncology

Antibody-drug conjugates or ADCs are a new class of biopharmaceutical drugs composed of an antibody that is linked via a chemical linker to a cytotoxic payload. The monoclonal antibody binds to receptors found on cancer cells and the linked drug enters these cells, killing them without harming healthy cells. Enhertu, Kadcyla, Blenrep, and Adcetris are some of the examples of approved ADCs.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies.  According to GlobalData, there are 160+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established pharmaceutical companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of ADC cancer therapy.

Key players in antibody drug conjugates (ADC) cancer therapy – a disruptive innovation in the pharmaceutical industry

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.

Patent volumes related to antibody drug conjugates (ADC) cancer therapy

Company Total patents (2021 - 2023) Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies
F. Hoffmann-La Roche 760 Unlock Company Profile
Gilead Sciences 304 Unlock Company Profile
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center 213 Unlock Company Profile
DuPont de Nemours 145 Unlock Company Profile
Biogen 128 Unlock Company Profile
Bayer 125 Unlock Company Profile
Bristol-Myers Squibb 121 Unlock Company Profile
Nordic Nanovector 120 Unlock Company Profile
Johnson & Johnson 114 Unlock Company Profile
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals 102 Unlock Company Profile
Novartis 93 Unlock Company Profile
Fujifilm Holdings 79 Unlock Company Profile
AbbVie 76 Unlock Company Profile
Amryt Pharma 75 Unlock Company Profile
Allegro Ophthalmics 73 Unlock Company Profile
Fredax 72 Unlock Company Profile
General Electric 67 Unlock Company Profile
Eisai 64 Unlock Company Profile
Philogen 62 Unlock Company Profile
E. Merck 57 Unlock Company Profile
Bracco 56 Unlock Company Profile
German Cancer Research Center 53 Unlock Company Profile
Immatics 51 Unlock Company Profile
Actinium Pharmaceuticals 51 Unlock Company Profile
Oxford BioTherapeutics 50 Unlock Company Profile
Clarity Pharmaceuticals 48 Unlock Company Profile
Genmab 46 Unlock Company Profile
Stemcentrx 45 Unlock Company Profile
Astellas Pharma 44 Unlock Company Profile
3B Pharmaceuticals 43 Unlock Company Profile
FusionPharm 41 Unlock Company Profile
Affibody 41 Unlock Company Profile
Alfasigma 40 Unlock Company Profile
Mallinckrodt 38 Unlock Company Profile
Agenus 37 Unlock Company Profile
Five Eleven Pharma 37 Unlock Company Profile
OncoTherapy Science 37 Unlock Company Profile
EnGeneIC 36 Unlock Company Profile
Bicycle Therapeutics 35 Unlock Company Profile
Takeda Pharmaceutical 34 Unlock Company Profile
BioNTech 32 Unlock Company Profile
Tarveda Therapeutics 32 Unlock Company Profile
Vision Global Holdings 32 Unlock Company Profile
ProvIncial Health Services Authority 30 Unlock Company Profile
C. H. Boehringer Sohn 29 Unlock Company Profile
Oncoinvent 29 Unlock Company Profile
Mayo Clinic 28 Unlock Company Profile
ImmunoGen 27 Unlock Company Profile
Hanmi Science 26 Unlock Company Profile
GE Healthcare 25 Unlock Company Profile

Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics

F. Hoffmann-La Roche is one of the leading patent filers for ADC cancer therapeutics. The approved ADCs under the company are Kadcyla, RoPolivy, 212 Pb-TCMC-Trastuzumab, and 212 Pb-PRIT. The company’s robust R&D capabilities enable it to address unmet medical needs for oncology, haematology, immunology, infectious diseases, ophthalmology, and neurological disorders. Gilead Sciences is the second leading patent filer for ADCs as cancer therapeutics. Gilead Sciences’ sacituzumab govitecan got market authorization for Metastatic Transitional (Urothelial) Tract Cancer and Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC). Labetuzumab govitecan and IMMU-140 are under development for further oncology indications

In terms of application diversity, Immatics is the top company followed by Astellas Pharma and C. H. Boehringer Sohn. By means of geographic reach, EnGeneIC holds the top position. Fredax and Oxford BioTherapeutics are in the second and third positions, respectively.

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the pharmaceutical industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Immuno-Oncology – Thematic Research.

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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.