After Sanofi Pasteur discontinued its Clostridium difficile vaccine development program, GlobalData analysts believe the market is ripe for competition.
Here's what you should know:
1. Both Pfizer and Valneva are developing C. diff vaccines. If development continues, Pfizer's PF-06425090 will be the first prophylactic option on the market. The drug is currently in a 16,000-participant, phase III trial with an estimated completion date of September 2020.
2. Valneva is also developing a vaccine, and while it is behind Pfizer in terms of development, it could gain an advantage by meeting its phase III trial endpoints.
3. GlobalData believes a C. diff vaccine is in high demand among physicians. However, concerns exist over properly identifying appropriate patient groups to receive the vaccine. It's not believed that either candidate will act as a blanket vaccine.
GlobalData analyst Thomas Moore said, "Should they successfully complete phase III trials this will be an important consideration for Pfizer or Valneva when it comes to positioning their vaccines and could be key to influencing how successful these products will be from a commercial standpoint."