Cancer drugs drive Roche sales up 20%

Roche Romania, one of the leading players on the Romanian pharmaceutical market, posted a 462 million-RON (111.6 million-euro) turnover in the first six months of the year, up by around 20% against the same time last year, according to information from market research company Cegedim, quoted by Roche representatives.

"The increase was mainly driven by cancer drugs, which account for over 40% of overall sales. The Romanian cancer drug market is not mature yet, so there is still room for growth. A significant portion of sales were accounted for by anaemia drugs, drugs used for chronic viral hepatitis and HIV-AIDS infection. The results are in line with our expectations for the full 2010, for which we have predicted a 5% turnover increase against 2009," said Dan Zamonea, general manager of Roche Romania.
The second half of 2010 is expected to be weaker for pharmaceutical companies, after the first half saw rises for all players. The drug industry went up 19% in the first half of the year.