NSAIDs and opioids dominate global pain therapeutics market

Regulatory incentives and innovative trial designs also boost market interest.

The global pain therapeutics market remains heavily dominated by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and opioids, with generics making up 98% of currently marketed pain medications, according GlobalData.

In its latest report, Global Pain Therapeutics Market and Modality Trends, GlobalData highlights the growing focus on voltage-gated sodium channel inhibitors as a promising alternative to opioids for pain management.

Philippa Salter, neurology analyst at GlobalData, noted that whilst opioids provide highly effective acute pain relief, they carry significant risks, including addiction, respiratory depression, and fatal overdose

”As patients develop tolerance to opioids, dose escalation is required to maintain therapeutic effect, resulting in their limited effectiveness for managing chronic pain,” she said.

Salter said that the most pressing unmet need in the pain market, highlighted by key opinion leaders interviewed by GlobalData, is the development of non-addictive alternatives to opioids.

Developers are also exploring novel modalities beyond oral small molecules, including cell and gene therapies, aiming for more targeted and long-lasting pain relief.

According to GlobalData’s drug database, as of January 2026, 39% of the global pain pipeline involves molecules other than small molecules. Additional trends include neuromodulation techniques, digital therapeutics, and wearable devices designed to improve pain management outcomes.

Despite these opportunities, the pain market faces challenges. The report noted that pain is subjective, making efficacy difficult to measure in clinical trials, and placebo response rates are high. Chronic pain’s heterogeneity also complicates patient stratification for trials.


Salter sad that regulatory incentives for developing non-opioid pain treatments, combined with innovative trial designsm, such as master protocol platform trials that evaluate multiple compounds across different pain types simultaneously, reducing development time and costs, continue to sustain strong interest in the pain market.