Dive Brief:
- Mexico approved Sanofi's Dengvaxia, making it the first-ever approved dengue vaccine. Approval is pending in 19 additional countries.
- Dengue is a debilitating tropical viral disease present in more than 100 countries. The mosquito borne disease kills at least 22,000 people per year and, until now, there has been no treatment. It affects a broad spectrum of people, from poorer populations in developing countries to middle-class people in middle-income urban areas.
- Dengvaxia could pull in $1.4 billion per year by 2020, according to sales estimates by Bloomberg analysts.
Dive Insight:
Over the last 20 years, Sanofi Pasteur has invested $1.65 billion in developing Dengvaxia. Considering the rising number of dengue outbreaks, the vaccine should be in high demand. There have been recent outbreaks in Portigal, Frace, Florida, and Japan, in addition to ongoing hotspots in Africa, Latin America, and Asia.
Dengvaxia is effective against all four types of dengue virus and is delivered via injection.
This appears to be a remarkable breakthrough. The World Health Organization (WHO) had set as an objective of reducing dengue-related mortality by 50% and morbidity by 25% by 2020. Dengvaxia may make that goal attainable.