Table 1

Prescription volume of antineoplastic agents in Taiwan (2009–2012)

Drug class	Drug name for patients with cancer	Number of prescriptions (market share by prescription volume)
		2009		2010		2011		2012		2009–2012
		N	Per cent	N	Per cent	N	Per cent	N	Per cent	Growth rate of N (%)	Growth rate of market share (%)
All antineoplastic agents		1 893 439	100	2 033 160	100	2 300 629	100	2 489 973	100	31.51
Targeted therapies		118 186	6.24	150 401	7.40	209 030	9.09	306 140	12.29	159.03	6.05
Monoclonal antibodies	Rituximab, trastuzumab, cetuximab, bevacizumab	52 073	2.75	68 595	3.37	102 074	4.44	144 234	5.79	176.98	3.04
Protein kinase inhibitors	Imatinib, gefitinib, erlotinib, sunitinib, sorafenib, dasatinib, nilotinib, temsirolimus, everolimus, pazopanib	63 936	3.38	78 675	3.87	102 435	4.45	153 764	6.18	140.50	2.80
Other targeted therapy agents	Bortezomib	2177	0.11	3131	0.15	4521	0.20	8142	0.33	274.00	0.21
Alkylating agents		125 811	6.64	132 109	6.50	147 076	6.39	148 654	5.97	18.16	−0.67
Nitrogen mustard analogues	Cyclophosphamide, chlorambucil, melphalan, ifosfamide, bendamustine	112 602	5.95	117 101	5.76	125 769	5.47	130 042	5.22	15.49	−0.72
Alkyl sulfonates	Busulfan	301	0.02	279	0.01	318	0.01	255	0.01	−15.28	−0.01
Nitrosoureas	Carmustine	250	0.01	218	0.01	263	0.01	321	0.01	28.40	0.00
Other alkylating agents	Temozolomide, dacarbazine	12 658	0.67	14 511	0.71	20 726	0.90	18 036	0.72	42.49	0.06
Antimetabolites		911 611	48.15	965 096	47.47	1 076 871	46.81	1 143 596	45.93	25.45	−2.22
Folic acid analogues	Methotrexate, pemetrexed	316 174	16.70	349 463	17.19	386 008	16.78	426 480	17.13	34.89	0.43
Purine analogues	Mercaptopurine, cladribine, fludarabine	12 550	0.66	12 094	0.59	12 277	0.53	12 891	0.52	2.72	−0.15
Pyrimidine analogues	Cytarabine, fluorouracil, tegafur, gemcitabine, capecitabine, tegafur_combinations	582 887	30.78	603 539	29.68	678 586	29.50	704 225	28.28	20.82	−2.50
Plant alkaloids and other natural products		217 347	11.48	222 304	10.93	250 312	10.88	250 273	10.05	15.15	−1.43
Vinca alkaloids and analogues	Vinblastine, vincristine, vinorelbine	84 009	4.44	85 659	4.21	88 135	3.83	88 377	3.55	5.20	−0.89
Podophyllotoxin derivatives	Etoposide	28 864	1.52	30 188	1.48	32 990	1.43	34 587	1.39	19.83	−0.14
Taxanes	Paclitaxel, docetaxel	104 474	5.52	106 457	5.24	129 187	5.62	127 309	5.11	21.86	−0.40
Cytotoxic antibiotics and related substances		140 168	7.40	140 697	6.92	145 663	6.33	146 796	5.90	4.73	−1.51
Actinomycines	Dactinomycin	616	0.03	698	0.03	667	0.03	761	0.03	23.54	0.00
Anthracyclines and related substances	Doxorubicin, daunorubicin, epirubicin, idarubicin, mitoxantrone	99 422	5.25	101 826	5.01	107 177	4.66	106 499	4.28	7.12	−0.97
Other cytotoxic antibiotics	Bleomycin, mitomycin	40 130	2.12	38 173	1.88	37 819	1.64	39 536	1.59	−1.48	−0.53
Other non-targeted therapies		380 316	20.09	422 553	20.78	471 677	20.50	494 514	19.86	30.03	−0.23
Platinum compounds	Cisplatin, carboplatin, oxaliplatin	254 636	13.45	286 260	14.08	304 437	13.23	306 659	12.32	20.43	−1.13
Sensitisers used in photodynamic/radiation therapy	Verteporfin	120	0.01	88	0.00	88	0.00	95	0.00	−20.83	0.00
Others	Asparaginase, hydroxycarbamide, estramustine, tretinoin, topotecan, irinotecan, mitotane, arsenic trioxide	125 560	6.63	136 205	6.70	167 152	7.27	187 760	7.54	49.54	0.91