New Delhi, Apr 02: Pharma major Cadila Healthcare Ltd today said it expects to launch nine drugs in the United States next year, eyeing a market of 3.5 billion dollars. These launches are part of 12 abbreviated new drug applications (Andas) filed with the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) in the year ended March 31, 2004, the Ahmedabad-based drugmaker said in a statement.

Aiming to aggressively push its products in the world's largest generic market, Cadila, which set up a subsidiary in the US in January last, plans to file 18 more drug applications with the US FDA by the end of current financial year.

''With a strong pipeline of Anda filings with US, we will now be well positioned to capitalise on our strengths in generic formulations and effectively play in the US generic market, which is estimated to be around 40 billion dollars over the next five years following several drugs go off patent.'' said Cadila CMD Pankaj Patel.

Patel pointed out that the company is targeting a slice of the US generic market on the basis of its proven chemistry capabilities, extensive talent pool and a world-class manufacturing base.
Bureau Report