Following the approval of Emgality, Alessio Brunello, Senior Pharma Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view on the first drug to gain FDA US approval for decreasing the frequency of episodic cluster headache attacks:

“As Eli Lilly is the only company to have begun trials in Japan with the drug, Emgality is expected to be a first-in-class therapy in this country, which is likely to give it slightly higher sales than Teva’s Ajovy. GlobalData anticipates that Emgality will generate sales of $1.02bn by 2026, making it the second highest seller in the migraine market. GlobalData also anticipates that Emgality will generate sales of $766M by 2026 in the US alone.

“While the competition in the preventative segment will be heavy, the high ACOT of the CGRP mAbs and the need for safe, effective preventative treatment sales are expected to be considerable. Eli Lilly’s extensive experience of commercializing products in the neurology market will also help establish Emgality in the migraine market. 

“Emgality is a humanized mAb that binds and inhibits the activity of CGRP. This represents a novel mechanism of action in the migraine market and is expected to meet several clinical unmet needs that are not addressed by triptans.”