Top-Selling Drugs 2024: Keytruda, Ozempic And Dupixent Dominate

Merck IO Drug Extends Lead As Obesity Drugs Climb Table

Merck’s immuno-oncology blockbuster was the world’s best-selling drugs by revenues for the second year in a row, with an almost $12bn lead over its closest rival, Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 drug Ozempic.

Close,Up,Of,Syringe,With,Money,Injection,On,Dollar,Banknotes
Best-selling drugs generate billions of dollars (Shutterstock)

Strong growth across multiple cancer indications as well as price rises saw Merck & Co’s PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda (pembrolizumab) increase its revenues by 18% in 2024, putting it more than $12bn ahead of its closest rival for the position of best-selling drug globally.

The GLP-1 inhibitors continued to exert their force over the global medicines market. Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic (semaglutide) for type 2...

Read the full article – start your free trial today!

Join thousands of industry professionals who rely on Scrip for daily insights

  • Start your 7-day free trial
  • Explore trusted news, analysis, and insights
  • Access comprehensive global coverage
  • Enjoy instant access – no credit card required

More from Business

Sarepta Sells Arrowhead Shares To Raise Cash, Pay Arrowhead

 
• By 

Sarepta is in a cash crunch with sales of Elevidys slumping due to safety concerns and with financial commitments coming due, including debt repayments and milestone fees for its partner Arrowhead.

Deal Watch: Lilly Teams With GPCR-Focused Superluminal In Cardiometabolic Disease

 
• By 

Plus deals involving Basilea/Venatorx, CorMedix/Melinta, SERB/Y-mAbs, XOMA/Lava, XOMA/Hillevax, MaxCyte/Adicet/Anocca and Bausch Health/DURECT.

Schrödinger Drops CDC7 Inhibitor SGR-2921 After Two Patient Deaths

 

The drug is one of multiple candidates in the class that have been pulled from development, though it is not the company’s lead candidate.

Finance Watch: OrbiMed’s New $1.86bn Fund Offers Financial Alternatives In Tough Market

 
• By 

Public Company Edition: OrbiMed partners Carter Neild and Matthew Rizzo spoke with Scrip about the firm’s fifth royalty and credit fund. Also, Ligand sold $400m worth of notes, BridgeBio’s oncology spinout went public via SPAC merger and raised $261m and Assembly raised $175m.

More from Earnings

PTC Projects Confidence In Sephience Launch With Royalty Buyback

 
• By 

The company will start shipping its newly launched phenylketonuria drug within two weeks and has bought back global net sales obligations for the treatment.

Lilly Confident In Orforglipron Despite Disappointing Phase III Data

 
• By 

Lilly spent much of its earnings call defending orforglipron as analysts lamented its results in obesity versus Novo’s semaglutide, overshadowing strong Q2 revenue growth driven by existing GLP-1/GIP franchise Mounjaro/Zepbound.

Competition Weighs On Gilead’s CAR-Ts As Both See Sales Decline

 

The quarter saw strong growth overall, but the company now expects sales of Yescarta and Tecartus to fall for the full year 2025 versus 2024 thanks to competition.