Defined as the inability (over the course of three months) to achieve an erection sufficient to perform sexual intercourse, less than 5% of the male population suffering from erectile dysfunction seeks help. Despite this, according to a recent Cowen & Co. report, the worldwide market for erectile dysfunction therapies is currently $500 million annually and could reach as much as $8 billion by 2002. A peripheral vascular disease therapeutic company, Vaxis Therapeutics Corp. , will focus its first products in this specific market niche in an attempt to penetrate this potentially huge opportunity. Through the development of both oral and local therapies, Vaxis hopes to become a player in the increasingly competitive field of treating male sexual dysfunction disorders.
Existing erectile dysfunction therapies range from oral therapies such as Pfizer Inc. 's Viagra,to vasodilators delivered by needle, with...