Development

The Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) of 2010 initially posed significant barriers to biosimilar development, but regulatory reforms over the years have drastically reduced costs and approval times, with further advancements expected by 2025 that will foster competition and drive down prices.

For biosimilars to overcome these entrenched market dynamics, they must not only compete on price but actively work to build a network of support among providers and patients.

The article by Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, critiques the irrationality surrounding biosimilars, suggesting that regulatory changes and cost reductions in manufacturing could make biosimilars as affordable as generic drugs.

While biosimilars could potentially lower costs and improve access to gene therapies, significant hurdles in regulation, manufacturing, intellectual property, and market size pose challenges to their development and market entry.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, explains the FDA's new guidelines on post-approval changes for biosimilars, emphasizing the processes for reporting modifications, comparability assessments, and the potential for biosimilars to introduce new indications or formulation changes, which could significantly impact their market competitiveness and accessibility.

Jeffrey Casberg discusses key upcoming biosimilars and specialty drugs, the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act on drug pricing, and the evolving role of pharmacy benefit managers in the market.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, urges stakeholders to engage with the FDA on its Reddit forum—where a representative will answer complex biosimilar questions—encourages clearing misconceptions, and advocates for updates to the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act guidelines.

Celltrion's adalimumab-aaty biosimilar is now accessible for all Costco members, while Amgen sues Samsung Bioepis over the latter’s denosumab biosimilar candidate, and GlycoNex progresses its denosumab biosimilar SPD8 to phase 3 trials.

The FDA's new policy on glycan profiling of monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) receives praise and recommendations from Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD.

A biosimilar dulaglutide showed similar pharmacokinetic and safety profiles compared with the reference product Trulicity in healthy Chinese participants, according to a phase 1 analysis.

As Celltrion publishes phase 3 data on its tocilizumab biosimilar, other companies finalize partnerships, and Formycon begins development for a pembrolizumab biosimilar.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, champions the FDA's updated guidance to remove switching study data for companies seeking to obtain an interchangeability designation for their biosimilars.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, makes suggestions for what arguments will help convince the FDA to waive clinical efficacy testing requirements for biosimilar approvals.

A poster from the European Hematology Association’s (EHA) 2024 annual meeting in Madrid, Spain, showed similar rates of transfusion avoidance between patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria who were administered reference eculizumab (Soliris) and those administered an eculizumab biosimilar (SB12).

Posters from the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting showcased safety and efficacy data for a trastuzumab biosimilar and an ado-trastuzumab biosimilar in HER2-positive (HER2+) cancers.

American and European regulatory agencies have provided companies with good news, with several biosimilar candidates seeing application acceptances or approvals in Europe.

Posters from Digestive Disease Week (DDW) on the ongoing LIBERTY-CD trial assessing Zymfentra, a subcutaneous infliximab product, compared with intravenous infliximab treatment in Crohn disease show the safety and efficacy of the product, as well as the impact of body mass index (BMI) on clinical outcomes.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, congratulates the FDA on approving the 50th biosimilar, noting that there's more work to be done to expand the market.

As Indian pharmaceutical companies supplied 4 of every 10 prescriptions in the US in 2022, generating $1.3 trillion in health care savings, a new IQVIA report highlights concerns about supply chain risks and advocates for partnerships to bolster biosimilar security and overall supply chain resilience.

A review article summarized the totality of evidence supporting the approval of the adalimumab biosimilar GP2017 (Hyrimoz; Sandoz) in the United States and Europe.

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, outlines how President Joe Biden's new budget for 2025 could impact biosimilars, including provisions to clear up confusion surrounding interchangeable products.

Kashyap Patel, MD, CEO of Carolina Blood and Cancer Care, a member of the Community Oncology Alliance, and member of The Center for Biosimilars® Advisory Board, glances back at the development of the biosimilar industry and the last 5 years of progress.

A Chinese phase 3 trial found biosimilar QL1207 to be as effective and safe as reference aflibercept (Eylea) for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD).

Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, takes a look at the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) announcement that it will investigate whether comparative efficacy tests should be needed for a biosimilar to receive regulatory approval.

At the Congress of European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO), Celltrion and Samsung Bioepis presented new finding from their respective biosimilar analyses, demonstrating positive safety and efficacy measures for the biosimilars as treatments for Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC).

Similar efficacy, safety, pharmacokinetics, and immunogenicity were found when comparing Stelara, originator ustekinumab, and CT-P43, an ustekinumab biosimilar candidate, in patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.

In his latest column, Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, highlights challenges in biosimilar development, emphasizing the crucial role of US Pharmacopeia (USP) and advocating for collaboration and standardized guidelines to expedite cost-effective development without compromising safety or efficacy.

The FDA, Congress, biologic developers, and associations dedicated to evaluating the US biopharmaceutical space will need to work together to overcome challenges to biosimilar accessibility, says Sarfaraz K. Niazi, PhD, in his new column.

As one study presented at the 2023 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) evaluated the use of circulating tumor DNA for response prediction after combination therapy with a trastuzumab biosimilar, another examined the efficacy of a pertuzumab biosimilar candidate.

Sarafraz K. Niazi, PhD, previews the new year and his hopes for the end of clinical efficacy testing for biosimilar approvals using examples from history of other scientific concepts that took time to gain traction.