News

With 1 biosimilar launch and expanded indications for another biosimilar so far this year, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries reported higher biosimilar revenues in the first quarter of 2020.

The Federal Trade Commission was deeply divided over whether the AbbVie-Allergan $63 billion merger plan would allow for a sufficiently competitive marketplace.

Although the totality of the evidence is reassuring, the jury is still out on nonmedical switching to biosimilars, according to new study results.

Bausch + Lomb has secured the rights to commercialize a ranibizumab biosimilar in the United States and Canada.

Expanding access to biosimilar pegfilgrastim (Ziextenzo) for patients at intermediate risk of febrile neutropenia and converting patients at high risk who are on the reference product (Neulasta) could save millions in healthcare costs, according to new study results.

Interest in tocilizumab has grown lately as Roche has a clinical trial underway to evaluate efficacy in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)–related pneumonia.

Although Pfizer has offered a more attractive discount for its rituximab biosimilar, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Celltrion Healthcare have decided not to match that discount for their own rituximab biosimilar, which is more costly.

After 17 years on the US market, Humira (adalimumab) proves it can still generate high sales, but competition from biosimilars is growing.

Amgen saw biosimilar competition eat a larger share of its innovator drug revenue but also earned some biosimilar pocket money of its own.

A smattering of biosimilar launches around the globe and positive results for biosimilar earnings across companies suggested a positive trend in April, despite the ongoing pandemic.

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has given its recommendation for the marketing authorization of Insulin aspart Sanofi.

Here are the top 5 biosimilars articles for the week of April 27, 2020.

The reasons for biosimilar brand preference in a recent rituximab study were unclear, but investigators said it is clear that savings were a likely factor.

Trying to carve back its market share for Neupogen, its filgrastim originator product, Amgen is hoping product exclusivity can be backdated.

Pfizer is battling biosimilar competition as its brands lose exclusivity but it is fighting fire with fire, launching multiple biosimilars of its own. Biogen has extended its commercialization agreements for biosimilars and said its earnings picture improved in the first quarter of 2020.

A new study found that office-based providers, especially those with large practice sizes, were earlier and quicker at adopting biosimilar filgrastim (Zarxio) than hospital-based providers.

European investigators say their analysis of court cases involving innovator monoclonal antibodies suggests secondary patents have generally failed to stop biosimilar competition.

Mylan and Biocon have launched their pegfilgrastim biosimilar, Fulphila, in Canada for the treatment of febrile neutropenia, a condition of low white blood cell count, as a result of chemotherapy.

With a growing portfolio of biosimilars, Novartis saw a 31% increase in biopharmaceutical sales for the first quarter of 2020, despite the pandemic.

One only needs to look at Europe to see the future, says a pharmacy expert, who sees the US payer landscape moving to greater biosimilar adoption in 2020.

Henlius Biotech said its manufacturing facility has met European standards for production of its trastuzumab biosimilar candidate, which the company said is "a passport" for potential commericialization across the globe.

A retrospective, postmarketing study demonstrates higher incidence of joint and bone pain, neutropenia with certain filgrastim biosimilars, compared with Neupogen.

Cheryl Larson, president and chief executive officer of the Midwest Business Group on Health, discusses the sticker shock of rising specialty drug costs and how biosimilars are going to be incorporated into efforts to push back against this medical inflation.

A New Zealand study of patients with rheumatic conditions suggests that providers need to be mindful of patient attitudes toward biosimilars to prevent biased therapy choices and poor outcomes.

Here are the top 5 biosimilars articles for the week of April 20, 2020.

Samsung Bioepis isn't flinching on its trastuzumab biosimilar launch schedule, COVID-19 and 4 other biosimilar competitors notwithstanding, said Sang-Jin Pak, MD, executive vice president of the company's Commercial Division.

Ha Kung Wong, JD, a patent law attorney with Venable of New York, New York, discusses recent regulatory actions to promote biosimilars.

Biosimilar pricing is not as simple as a manufacturer's stated discount to the reference product cost, according to Adam Brufsky, MD, PhD, FACP, of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) in Pennsylvania.

Although the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has put a burden on the economy and the healthcare system in particular, Kashyap Patel, MD, believes that the crisis will likely speed up biosimilar uptake in the United States.

A peer-reviewed study suggested that comparative efficacy trials are not always needed to determine efficacy equivalence for biosimilars, as data from pharmacokinetic (PK) studies and in vitro functional assays may suffice.