Nearly three quarters of global industry stakeholders identified immuno-oncology (I-O) or personalized medicine as the most impactful trends that will shape the pharmaceutical sector in 2020, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Claire Herman, Global Director of Therapy Analysis and Epidemiology at GlobalData, comments: “For the second consecutive year, our survey found that a majority of respondents believe that I-O or personalized medicine are the top trends to watch, with 40% and 34%, respectively, selecting them as the most impactful areas of investment and innovation.”

The survey, the results of which were published in GlobalData’s latest annual outlook report, ‘The State of the Biopharmaceutical Industry – 2020,’ notes that other trends such as the growing role of real-world evidence (RWE) and a rise in the use of electronic health records (EHRs) also garnered attention, with 28% and 22%, respectively.

Herman adds: “The majority of respondents believe that game-changing prescription drugs that treat diseases using powerful new approaches stand to make the biggest splash this year. I-O drugs have become increasingly well-established as a pillar of cancer care. This growth has been driven by regulatory approvals in a range of new indications, a slew of development and marketing partnerships, and exploration of new combination treatment strategies.”

Fern Barkalow, GlobalData’s Senior Director of Oncology and Hematology, comments: “As the mechanisms underlying the action of various I-O combination approaches become better elucidated, these drugs will gain further traction in the treatment paradigms of a variety of cancers in 2020, moving into earlier lines of therapy, as well as demonstrating success in those ‘cold’ tumors previously resistant to I-O treatment.”

Personalized medicine is poised to undergo similar growth in 2020, with a range of pipeline products in late-stage development, and is set to hit milestones such as trial completion and regulatory filings.

Herman continues: “GlobalData’s research on the field of personalized medicine has unearthed tremendous enthusiasm for the potential of this type of drug to shift the therapeutic paradigm towards an individualized, patient-centric disease management approach. Over the past few years, our interviews with thought-leading physicians and our surveys of high prescribers have consistently indicated that, while research and development (R&D) in these areas has seen some setbacks, overall expectations are extremely high across a range of disease areas, from oncology to neurology to rare genetic disorders. Investment in targeted therapeutics has been building for over a decade, with no end in sight.”