Tarsus Pharmaceuticals Patient Finder Analysis

Analysis Date: March 11, 2026
Analyst: Ada Cockpit Research
Company: Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: TARS)

Executive Summary

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals is a TIER 1 opportunity for Ada's In-Market Patient Finder.

The company's sole marketed product, XDEMVY, treats Demodex blepharitis—a highly prevalent, severely underdiagnosed ocular condition affecting millions of Americans. With 58% of patients remaining undiagnosed despite experiencing symptoms for 4+ years, Ada's symptom checker can bridge the massive awareness-to-diagnosis gap and drive qualified referrals to ophthalmologists, unlocking incremental revenue for both Tarsus and Ada.

Addressable Undiagnosed (USA): 1.6M patients
Ada Revenue Opportunity (5%): $11.6M/year
Fit Score: 9.6/10
Tier: TIER 1

Portfolio Summary Table

Drug Indication Stage Tier Fit Score Addressable Undiagnosed (USA) Ada Revenue Opportunity (1% / 5%)
XDEMVY (TP-03) Demodex blepharitis Marketed (FDA approved 7/24/2023) TIER 1 9.6/10 1,624,000 $2.32M / $11.61M
TP-04 Ocular rosacea Phase 2 (data H1 2027) NO N/A N/A N/A
TP-05 Lyme prevention Phase 2 (planned Q2 2026) NO N/A N/A N/A
Recommendation: Initiate outreach to Tarsus Pharmaceuticals immediately for XDEMVY Patient Finder partnership. This is a flagship opportunity characterized by massive underdiagnosis, exceptional Ada surfaceability, strong company motivation, and accelerating commercial momentum.

XDEMVY (lotilaner ophthalmic solution 0.25%) - Full Analysis

Section A: Market Numbers

USA Market

Total Condition Prevalence

Undiagnosed Patients

XDEMVY-Addressable Undiagnosed Funnel

Total undiagnosed: 5,800,000
↓ Moderate-severe symptoms: 4,060,000 (70%)
↓ Treatment-seeking: 2,030,000 (50%)
↓ Prescription-appropriate: 1,624,000 (80%)
Metric Value Source/Calculation
WAC per 6-week course $1,850 EyeWiki, Lotilaner
Annual WAC per patient $2,590 $1,850 × 1.4 courses/year
Gross-to-net discount 45% Tarsus Q4 2025 earnings
Net revenue per patient $1,425 $2,590 × 55%
Patient Finder fee (10%) $143 per patient Revenue to Ada

Financial Performance

Period Net Revenue Growth
FY 2024 ~$180M Post-launch year
FY 2025 $451.4M +151% YoY
FY 2026 (Guidance) $670-700M +50%+ YoY
Peak Sales (H.C. Wainwright) $885M (2030) Conservative estimate
Peak Sales (Management) >$2B Aspirational target

Patent & Exclusivity

Top Competitors

  1. Tea Tree Oil Products (Cliradex, etc.)
    • Market: OTC lid hygiene segment (38% of blepharitis market, ~$720M)
    • Limitations: Variable efficacy, no FDA approval
  2. No FDA-approved Rx alternatives
    • XDEMVY holds monopoly in prescription segment
  3. Pipeline competitors: NCX 4251, pimecrolimus 0.3% (early-stage)

DACH Market (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)

Metric Value
Estimated total cases 3.5 million
Undiagnosed (58%) 2,030,000
XDEMVY-addressable 568,400
Net revenue per patient (EU) €1,534 (~$1,660)
Patient Finder fee (10%) €153 (~$166) per patient
Ada revenue (1% penetration) €870K (~$940K)/year
Ada revenue (5% penetration) €4.35M (~$4.7M)/year
EMA Approval Expected 2027

Global Market Snapshot

China: Regulatory approval expected 2026; estimated 12.3M addressable undiagnosed patients; $9.84M-$49.2M Ada revenue opportunity at 1-5% penetration.

Rest of World: Japan and other APAC markets in development; insufficient granular data for full analysis.

Section B: Clinical & Diagnostic Profile

Patient-Reported Symptoms

Diagnostic Delay & Underdiagnosis

Metric Value Impact
Underdiagnosis rate 58% Millions suffering without treatment
Diagnostic delay (51% of patients) 4+ years Chronic suffering, reduced quality of life
Negative impact on daily life 80% of patients Driving, hygiene, contact lenses, makeup
Mental health burden 67% ↑ anxiety, 52% ↑ depression Comorbid psychiatric conditions

Common Misdiagnoses

  1. Dry eye disease (most common)
  2. Allergic conjunctivitis
  3. Bacterial blepharitis
  4. Meibomian gland dysfunction
  5. General "eye irritation" or "tired eyes"

Diagnostic Pathway

Provider Role Actions
Primary Care Physician Initial contact Refers to eye specialist; suggests OTC artificial tears (ineffective for Demodex)
Optometrist First-line eye specialist Slit-lamp diagnosis via collarette identification; prescribes XDEMVY or refers to ophthalmologist
Ophthalmologist Advanced care Confirms diagnosis, prescribes XDEMVY, manages complex/refractory cases

Ada Symptom Checker Suitability

HIGHLY SUITABLE: 9/10

Strengths:

Limitations:

Treatment Profile

Section C: Commercial & Strategic Signals

Launch Trajectory

XDEMVY is one of the fastest specialty pharma launches in recent history:

Earnings Call Signals (Q4 2025)

Interpretation: Company is actively investing in patient awareness but has not yet partnered with patient-finding services. Opportunity for Ada

Competitive Position

FDA-APPROVED MONOPOLY

Investment Appetite

VERY HIGH: 9/10

Company Motivation to Partner

HIGHLY MOTIVATED: 9/10

Factor Score Rationale
Growth dependency 10/10 "Growth driven by new patients"; must continually find patients to sustain trajectory
Underdiagnosis crisis 10/10 58% undiagnosed, 4+ year delay; massive patient pool unreachable by DTC alone
Diagnosis bottleneck 9/10 Requires specialist exam; PCPs don't diagnose; Ada bridges awareness-to-referral gap
Budget availability 8/10 $545-565M SG&A; profitability 2027; can afford performance-based fees
Competitive moat timing 9/10 FDA monopoly until 2028+; every patient found accrues to XDEMVY
International expansion 7/10 China/Europe launches; will need patient finding in new markets

Section D: Patient Finder Opportunity Assessment

Economic Opportunity (USA)

Scenario Patients Found Annual Ada Revenue
1% penetration of addressable 16,240 $2.32 million
5% penetration of addressable 81,200 $11.61 million

Total Global Opportunity

Market 1% Penetration 5% Penetration Timing
USA $2.32M $11.61M Immediate
DACH $0.94M $4.7M Post-2027 (EMA approval)
China $9.84M $49.2M Post-2026 (regulatory approval)
TOTAL $13.1M/year $65.51M/year Phased rollout

Scoring Summary

Dimension Weight Score Weighted
Market Size (addressable undiagnosed) 20% 10 2.0
Underdiagnosis Rate 20% 10 2.0
Ada Surface Ability 15% 9 1.35
Company Motivation 15% 9 1.35
Commercial Maturity 10% 9 0.9
Competitive Dynamics 10% 10 1.0
Patient Journey (delay, QoL) 10% 10 1.0
OVERALL FIT SCORE 9.6/10

Tier Classification

TIER 1 - PURSUE AGGRESSIVELY

Pitch Hook

One-liner for first email:

"Tarsus is capturing impressive growth with XDEMVY, but 58% of Demodex blepharitis patients remain undiagnosed despite experiencing symptoms for 4+ years—Ada's Patient Finder can identify and navigate these patients to care at scale, turning your $1.6M addressable undiagnosed pool into incremental revenue."

Extended Pitch (Diagnostic Delay Focus)

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals has built remarkable commercial momentum with XDEMVY, achieving $451 million in 2025 revenue and guiding to nearly $700 million in 2026. But beneath this success lies a significant untapped opportunity: more than half of Demodex blepharitis patients remain undiagnosed, with 51% experiencing symptoms for over four years before receiving a correct diagnosis.

These patients are suffering—reporting an 80% negative impact on daily life, 67% higher anxiety rates, and impairment in driving, contact lens wear, and personal hygiene—yet they're invisible to traditional physician outreach and DTC campaigns.

Ada's Patient Finder solves this diagnostic bottleneck. Our symptom assessment can identify Demodex blepharitis suspects based on the distinctive symptom cluster—chronic bilateral eyelid itching, morning crustiness, burning sensation, and comorbid dry eye—and navigate them directly to ophthalmologists and optometrists for slit-lamp confirmation.

With 1.6 million XDEMVY-addressable undiagnosed patients in the US alone, even 1% penetration delivers 16,000+ incremental patients and $2.3 million in performance-based fees to Ada, while expanding your market by millions in net revenue.

This isn't awareness marketing; it's precision patient finding. We identify symptomatic patients already seeking answers, confirm clinical fit through our assessment, and deliver qualified referrals to your prescriber network. With your FDA-approved monopoly providing a 2-3 year partnership window before competition emerges, now is the optimal time to capture the diagnosed market share.

Let's discuss how Ada can accelerate your path to the $2B peak sales vision by solving the underdiagnosis crisis together.


Pipeline Drugs Assessment

TP-04 (lotilaner ophthalmic gel) - Ocular Rosacea

Status: Phase 2 (topline data expected H1 2027)

Tier: NO - Not Suitable

Rationale:

Recommendation: Revisit in 2028-2029 if FDA approved for In-Market Finder consideration.

TP-05 (lotilaner oral tablet) - Lyme Disease Prevention

Status: Phase 2 (planned Q2 2026 start; topline data expected H1 2027)

Tier: NO - Not Suitable

Rationale:

Recommendation: Not applicable for Patient Finder (even post-approval).


Strategic Recommendations

Next Steps

  1. Initiate Outreach to Tarsus Commercial Leadership
    • Chief Commercial Officer
    • VP of Marketing
    • Head of Patient Access/Services
  2. Value Proposition Messaging
    • Emphasize diagnostic delay crisis (4+ years, 58% undiagnosed)
    • Quantify incremental revenue opportunity ($2.3M at 1%, $11.6M at 5% US penetration)
    • Highlight performance-based model (8-12% of revenue; low risk)
    • Position as market expansion, not marketing
  3. Proposed Pilot Structure
    • US-only initial pilot (expand to China/Europe upon approval)
    • 6-12 month pilot term
    • Track: Ada assessments → ophthalmology referrals → XDEMVY prescriptions → patient revenue
    • Success metric: >1% conversion of addressable pool
  4. Differentiation from DTC
    • DTC creates awareness; Patient Finder drives qualified referrals
    • DTC is broadcast; Patient Finder is precision (symptomatic patients already seeking answers)
    • DTC requires specialist to diagnose; Patient Finder pre-qualifies and navigates

Risks & Mitigations

Risk Mitigation
Tarsus may view Patient Finder as duplicative of DTC Position as complementary; DTC raises awareness, PF delivers referrals and closes diagnosis loop
Attribution challenges (proving Ada drove prescription) Unique referral codes, ophthalmology partner tracking, post-Rx patient surveys
Budget constraints (company not yet profitable) Performance-based model minimizes upfront cost; ROI is immediate (patients found = revenue)
International expansion may dilute focus Start US-only pilot; expand to new geographies upon regulatory approval and proven US success