Recently, the famous hemorrhoid drug "Taining Suppository" was announced to stop production and withdraw from the market due to the lack of production raw materials in the world, and the price of the remaining Taining Suppository on the market increased more than ten times crazily after the stop of production, from 23 yuan to 68 yuan per box, once soared to more than 400 yuan per box today! This incident also brought many people's speculations and doubts. The suspension and market withdrawal of Taining Suppository were really caused by raw materials? Or something else??!
As we all know, in recent years, it is not uncommon for international famous brands with foreign investment background to retreat from the Chinese market. In 2020, GAP, a well-known American clothing retail brand, closed its stores and withdrew from the Chinese market on the pretext of "focusing more on the North American market"; In 2023, Mitsubishi Motors, a Japanese auto manufacturing giant, will withdraw from China due to "business structure change"... However, all of these closures or exits are closely related to product competitiveness and market share.
Behind the appearance is the struggle between Chinese medicine and western medicine. Chinese patent medicine has already gone beyond the curve in the treatment of hemorrhoids
Hemorrhoids, a disease at the end of the human digestive system, is divided into internal hemorrhoids, external hemorrhoids and mixed hemorrhoids. Hemorrhoids can cause bloody stool pain, prolapse of hemorrhoids, mass inflammation and other symptoms when they occur. In severe cases, it can cause anemia, a variety of anorectal diseases, and seriously reduce the quality of life. According to the epidemiological sampling survey of common anorectal diseases among Chinese adults, the total incidence of hemorrhoids among Chinese people is 49.14%. It can be seen that although the saying of "ten people and nine hemorrhoids" is exaggerated, nearly half of Chinese people do have hemorrhoids, and such a large proportion should not be underestimated.
In the medical community, the consensus on the treatment of hemorrhoids is that it is mainly to eliminate the symptoms, rather than the hemorrhoids themselves. Therefore, hemorrhoid related drugs often do a lot of work in eliminating symptoms, and hemorrhoid drugs can be divided into two categories: Chinese patent medicine and chemical medicine (that is, western medicine). The discontinued Taining Suppository belongs to western medicine. Its general name is compound carrageenan suppository, and its main component is carrageenan. It is an extract of seaweed and an over-the-counter drug for external use. It is used for symptomatic treatment of pain, itching, swelling and bleeding caused by hemorrhoids and other anal diseases, and for relieving discomfort after local anal surgery.
Then look at the Chinese patent medicine for hemorrhoids. Its typical representatives are Anal Thai Suppository, hemorrhoid ointment, etc. Taking Antai Suppository as an example, its main ingredients are traditional Chinese medicine, consisting of Sanguisorba officinalis charcoal (cooling blood and stopping bleeding), borneol (relieving pain and inflammation), Chinese nutgall (producing muscle, astringing sore and promoting healing), etc. It avoids the hormone and other ingredients of western medicine, is more friendly to human body, has higher safety attributes, and is more consistent with Chinese constitution. At the same time, TCM preparations pay more attention to overall conditioning and individualized treatment. The combination of herbs can comprehensively regulate the body, improve the overall environment of the body and enhance immunity while treating hemorrhoids and other local diseases.
In addition, according to the data of the Research Report on Market Analysis of China's Hemorrhoid Drug Industry 2023 by Zhiyan Consulting, Chinese patent drugs account for the largest proportion in China's hemorrhoid drug market, accounting for 84.82%; Chemical drugs (western medicine) are relatively small, accounting for only 15.18%. It can also be seen that in the hemorrhoid drug market, western medicine is far less than the market share of Chinese patent medicine products, so even if there is no "raw material" problem, Taining Suppository is also a challenge.
Adherence and use experience should be valued for topical drugs, and body feeling plus efficacy is the key to "overtaking"
Due to the sensitivity of the location of hemorrhoids and the particularity of drug use, the compliance and use experience of hemorrhoids patients will inevitably become an important part of drug selection. Similarly, the use of Taining Suppository in western medicine was compared with that of Antai Suppository in Chinese patent medicine. The treatment of Taining Suppository was focused on mucosal protective agent, which led to its suppository body being 3.4g, the largest external hemorrhoid drug. The Anal Thai Suppository adopts a unique concentration technology, and a variety of drug ingredients play a role together. It has a smaller volume of only 1g. When administered, it has less stimulation to the anal muscles and is not easy to discharge. The patient's compliance is good.
In addition to the Anal Thai Suppository, there are many hemorrhoid drugs in various forms on the market, which can bring better use experience to patients: for example, the hemorrhoid patch can be used to treat hemorrhoids by sticking the navel, which can be easily absorbed through the skin, and can be used anytime and anywhere; There are also ointment dosage forms equipped with pads and drug delivery tubes, which can avoid drug waste and do not pollute underpants... These all show the innovation and breakthrough of national hemorrhoid drug products step by step.
In a word, on the basis of ensuring the efficacy, domestic hemorrhoid drugs are also more friendly in the use experience of patients, which can effectively reduce the pain and inconvenience of hemorrhoid patients.
Effective and cheap is the king's way, long-term medication needs more attention to cost-benefit ratio
For hemorrhoid patients, because of the particularity of the disease, they often need long-term medication. Therefore, the price of drugs is also one of the important decision-making bases for patients to choose drugs.
According to the accounting, the price of Taining Suppository before the "price rise storm" was 35 yuan, and the daily treatment cost was 5-7 yuan; In comparison, the daily treatment cost of domestic Anal Thai Suppository is 3-4 yuan, and the average daily cost is obviously more advantageous. In addition, Anal Thai Suppository is a medical insurance reimbursable product, which has been listed in the "Directory of Medical Insurance for Urban Employees", and can greatly reduce the economic burden of patients.
It is worth mentioning that Antai Suppository has also been included in the National Essential Drug Catalog, which is an official drug catalog formulated by the state to meet the basic medical and health needs of the people, ensure drug supply, and promote rational drug use. The directory is issued by the National Health Commission, aiming to ensure the quality and safety of drugs, encourage rational drug use, and reduce public medical costs.
As an important document to ensure the national health, the inclusion criteria of the National Essential Drugs Catalogue are strict and clear, and it is necessary to ensure the efficiency, safety and economy of drugs. Therefore, the drugs selected can be said to be the first choice for clinical treatment. In the National Essential Drug Catalogue, there are only three hemorrhoid topical drugs explicitly mentioned, all of which are domestic hemorrhoid drugs
Therefore, it can be said that domestic drugs such as Antai Suppository are more in line with the needs of patients with high cost performance and good quality in the treatment of hemorrhoids, and can be the first choice of Taining Suppository.
The rise of national brands and the replacement of foreign famous drugs by domestic products
Zhou Shuhua, chief analyst of Citeline, a drug and medical device market think tank, said in an interview: If Taining Suppository is a heavy product of the enterprise, it is unlikely that the enterprise will have a shortage of raw materials, which is not in line with the principle of interests pursued by the enterprise. If this drug brings enough economic benefits to the enterprise, the enterprise may also consider artificial cultivation of the above red algae to try to avoid the situation of drug production suspension. In his opinion, the core reason behind the suspension of production is not likely to be the shortage of raw materials, but may also be related to the market share and return rate of drugs.
In response to this incident, the market representative of a well-known domestic hemorrhoid drug brand said that it was the market behavior of enterprises to stop production of Taining Suppository and withdraw from the Chinese market, and they did not want to make too many comments. As for the phenomenon that consumers are willing to spend a lot of money to buy Taining Suppository, the representative said that this is the personal behavior of some consumers, who may not know about other effective alternative products in the market. As an enterprise always committed to protecting consumers' anorectal health, their brand has the responsibility and obligation to improve the public's awareness of hemorrhoid treatment and prevention knowledge, and minimize everyone's "post hemorrhoid worries". Wang Yi, deputy chief physician of gastrointestinal surgery in People's Hospital of Peking University, said in an interview that although the production of compound carrageenan suppository had stopped, hemorrhoid patients should not be too worried, and there were still many drugs to choose from. Through e-commerce platforms and drugstore visits, we also learned that many hemorrhoid patients have paid attention to some well-known domestic brands while paying attention to Taining Suppository's inventory of drugs. It is only a gradual process to replace foreign famous drugs with domestic products.
Looking at the hemorrhoid drug market in recent years, Taining Suppository has always had a good reputation as an imported drug, but it is an indisputable fact that its advantage in market share has long been lost. According to the feedback from insiders, as early as the past decade, Taining Suppository has withdrawn from the domestic hospital and pharmacy retail market, and its scale has gradually shrunk.
In addition, according to the latest Mi Nei net data, the Anal Thai Suppository, one of the domestic hemorrhoid drugs, is the champion in the hospital sales scene, far exceeding the clinical prescription usage of Taining Suppository and other hemorrhoid drugs in the hospital. It can be seen that from the professional perspective of doctors, Tantai, a domestic hemorrhoid drug, has more advantages in clinical effect and patient efficacy, so it is only a matter of time before it is accepted by more Taining Suppository users.
Looking forward to the future, the rise of domestic products not only stems from the confident display of product quality, but also the inheritance and development of national brand culture. In the hemorrhoid drug market, Chinese brands such as Antai gradually occupy the mainstream position of the market by virtue of their hard power. With the gradual withdrawal of imported and foreign brands such as Taining Suppository, domestic hemorrhoid drug brands have ushered in a rare development opportunity.
In the face of the new market pattern that hemorrhoid drugs may face, domestic brands should stick to quality and actively innovate, strive to improve the core competitiveness of products, protect the national health, illuminate the road to health with the light of domestic products, and contribute more to building a healthy China.
Disclaimer: There are risks in the market, so you should be careful! This article is for reference only, not for sale basis.
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