Radioligand Therapy Patents: Who Leads, Where the Gaps Are 2026
Radioligand and radioconjugate therapy patents: filing momentum, leading assignees and open claim space
Filings grew 89% from 2021 to 2024 (96 to 181 records), the clearest complete-year signal in the dataset before publication lag understates 2025-2026. Filings rose from 79 in 2017 to a peak of 201 in 2018, then continued at elevated levels; the 2021-to-2024 span shows the clearest sustained growth in the dataset, up 89% (96 to 181 records). 2025 and 2026 figures (18 in 2026) are undercounts — publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so recent-year totals will keep rising as records publish.
- 1JANSSEN BIOTECH INC146
- 2SCIENCONS AS109
- 3REGENERON PHARMACEUTICALS INC108
- 4NORDIC NANOVECTOR AS101
- 5GENENTECH INC88
See the full radioligand and radioconjugate therapy analysis in Eureka
- The complete ranking, not just the top five
- Every IPC branch with its share of the corpus
- The most-cited records, and where claim space is still thin
Common questions about this landscape
How many patents exist for radioligand and radioconjugate therapy?
This dataset identifies 1,924 patent families published or filed between 2015 and mid-2026 that reference radioligand therapy, radioimmunoconjugates or chelator conjugation alongside a practical constraint such as isotope availability, chelate stability, specific activity or dosimetry. This is a defined search scope, not a count of every patent touching radiochemistry broadly, so the true universe of related filings is larger. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the most recent one to two years in the total will keep rising as more records publish.
Who are the leading patent holders in radioligand therapy?
The ranked leader in this dataset holds 146 records, with a fairly steep drop to 88 at fifth place and 45 at tenth — indicating a distinct top tier rather than a flat field. The top 5 assignees together account for 28.7% of all 1,924 records, and the top 10 account for 41.2%. Beyond that group the ranking spreads across a long tail of companies and institutions each holding a handful of families, including specialist radioligand developers, large pharmaceutical companies, and academic medical centres.
Is the radioligand therapy patent field still growing?
Yes, based on the last fully complete years of data: filings grew from 96 in 2021 to 181 in 2024, an 89% increase. The single highest filing year on record so far is 2018 at 201. Figures for 2025 and 2026 appear lower only because publication typically lags actual filing by around 18 months, not because activity has slowed — those years should not yet be read as a decline.
Disclaimer. This analysis is based on Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent records and is provided for general information and reference only. Patent data carries inherent limitations — recent filings are under-counted because of publication lag, counts may be on a record or family basis, classification and applicant-name data may contain errors or duplicates, and the underlying search query defines the scope shown — so the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing here is an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Verify independently and review with qualified patent and legal professionals before acting on it.
Method: Filing trend and technology composition. Derived from a Patsnap search on Radioligand and Radioconjugate Therapy covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish. Every share divides by all records in scope. Data: Patsnap Eureka. See the full landscape report.