News

“I see no reason as a healthcare provider to intentionally go back and forth needlessly, but I see no concerns that, if I do that, bad things would happen,” said Jason Schairer, MD.

Walgreen and Kroger have filed an antitrust lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Janssen over Remicade.

Crohn disease (CD) can involve physical, psychological, and social impairments that negatively impact patients’ quality of life, and high levels of anxiety and depression have been observed in patients with CD.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) annual meeting, held June 1-5, 2018, in Chicago, Illinois, featured results of numerous studies on biosimilars in anticancer and supportive care. Here are 5 key takeaways from the meeting.

This week, the International Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (IGBA) was elected as a Management Committee Member of the International Council for Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH).

The FDA has approved Genentech’s innovator rituximab (Rituxan) for the treatment of adults with moderate to severe pemphigus vulgaris (PV). This expanded indication makes the drug the first biologic approved for the treatment of PV, a rare autoimmune disease that affects the skin and mucous membranes with progressive blistering.

This week, a Delaware District court granted Boehringer Ingelheim’s (BI) motion to compel discovery in AbbVie v Boehringer Ingelheim, an ongoing litigation over adalimumab (Humira).

The Center for Biosimilars® recaps the top 5 articles for the week of June 4, 2018.

The question of whether to switch patients from a reference biologic to an available biosimilar has been the subject of extensive debate, especially in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), an indication in which evidence on relevant clinical outcomes after switching is limited.

EvaluatePharma, a company that provides consensus forecasts of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sphere, recently published its 11th edition of its World Preview. In this 2018 installment, the company provided an overview of what investors and other stakeholders can expect to see in the industry from 2018 to 2024.

Republic of Korea-based biosimilar developer Celltrion, maker of Inflectra, has announced that it will launch a contract development and manufacturing business to develop novel agents alongside its biosimilar pipeline.

This week, the FDA released a draft guidance document titled “Formal Meetings Between the FDA and Sponsors or Applicants of [Biosimilar User Fee Act] BsUFA Products.” The guidance offers clarification to industry members on the procedures and specifications of formal meetings with the FDA.

Celltrion presented new research that demonstrates that a formulation of its infliximab biosimilar intended for subcutaneous administration is comparable to the intravenously administered option. The phase 1 study compared the subcutaneous formulation—which can be self-administered—with the FDA-approved intravenous formulation in patients with active Crohn disease (CD).

The FDA has approved Mylan and Biocon’s pegfilgrastim biosimilar, pegfilgrastim-jmdb. The product, the first biosimilar pegfilgrastim approved in the United States, will be sold under the brand name Fulphila.

On June 1, drug maker Apotex announced that its Apobiologix division has received approval from Health Canada for its pegfilgrastim biosimilar, Lapelga. Lapelga is the first pegfilgrastim biosimilar to be approved in a highly regulated territory.

Mylan and its partner Biocon have received a Complete Response Letter from the FDA in regard to their application for a follow-on insulin glargine referencing Lantus.

This week, the FDA approved an expanded indication of the Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor tofacitinib (Xeljanz) to include adults with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis. Tofacitinib is the first oral medicine approved for long-term use in UC, and provides an alternative to anti–tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) drugs that must be injected or infused.

Amgen has announced that the FDA has issued a Complete Response Letter for its biosimilar trastuzumab candidate, ABP 980.

The Center for Biosimilars® recaps the top 5 articles for the week of May 28, 2018.

On Friday morning in Chicago, Illinois, The Atlantic hosted a series of panels, moderated by Steve Clemons, on the role biosimilars in cancer care. Opening the morning’s proceedings were Gary Lyman, MD, MPH, co-director of the Hutchinson Institute for Cancer Outcomes Research, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and Chadi Nabhan, MD, MBA, FACP, CMO of Cardinal Health Specialty Solutions.

This week, the Community Oncology Alliance (COA), which represents approximately 5000 community oncologists, announced that it has filed a lawsuit against HHS, HHS Secretary Alex Azar, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the director of the OMB, Mick Mulvaney, in the District of Columbia to stop the departments from applying the Medicare sequester cut to reimbursement for Part B drugs.

Two biosimilar developers today announced that they have received positive opinions for products from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).

Recently, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) released a set of policy recommendations to improve patient access to much-needed insulin and to lower the substantial cost to treat diabetes.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, on Thursday announced new draft guidance documents aimed at limiting the potential for drug makers to abuse Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) requirements. The announcement comes on the heels of President Donald Trump’s drug pricing plan, which called on the agency to issue guidance on how manufacturers use REMS programs to delay competition from follow-on products.

Boehringer Ingelheim’s (BI) adalimumab biosimilar, Cyltezo, can be successfully self-administered—via auto-injector—by most patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Vizient, a healthcare performance improvement company, recently voiced its concerns to the Office of the United States Trade Representative about proposed tariffs on Chinese products.

This week, the European Commission proposed a “recalibration” of Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) to boost investment in the development and manufacture of biosimilars and generics.

Biosimilar developer Celltrion has resubmitted its Biologics License Application (BLA) for a proposed rituximab biosimilar, CT-P10, to the FDA for regulatory consideration. The company received a Complete Response Letter for the drug in April 2018, after having received an earlier warning letter from the agency that raised concerns about the company’s manufacturing processes.

In a new paper, researchers sought to describe how much the European Union is overspending on neovascular age-related macular degeneration treatment by relying on ranibizumab and aflibercept rather than bevacizumab in ophthalmology.

While it is already known that obesity may contribute to an increased risk developing some immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, as well as more severe disease activity and a higher burden of hospitalization, a new review found that obesity is also a predictor of inferior response to anti–tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) agents.