Dive Brief:
- Toujeo, Sanofi's next-gen basal insulin, was approved in the U.S. on February 25.
- Toujeo is a once-daily, long-acting insulin for treatment of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
- Toujeo was approved in the EU on February 23.
Dive Insight:
The race is on for Sanofi to launch in the US market and start to defend its long-acting insulin franchise. The stakes are high, as Lantus, Sanofi's long-lasting basal insulin, which generated $7.2 billion in sales last year, heads towards patent expiry.
In addition, the competitive landscape is heating up as Novo resubmits data for its long-lasting insulin, Tresiba. And although Eli Lilly's long-acting insulin, Peglispro, is still in development, the company is targeting 2016 for submission of its NDA.
Sanofi will be hoping that its earlier entry into the market with Toujeo will help mitigate some of the considerable competitive pressures that the company is facing.