Oncology

Two posters presented at the European Hematology Association’s annual meeting (EHA 2024) evaluated how rituximab biosimilars impact quality of life and infusion-related reactions in patients with lymphatic cancers.

Two posters from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting look at Medicare reimbursement trends for originator and biosimilar biologics, as well as a combination therapy utilizing a pegfilgrastim biosimilar in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.

The broader adoption of biosimilar drugs has the potential to significantly reduce cancer care costs and improve patient access to more affordable treatments, benefiting both patients and payers. However, a recent review highlights that biosimilar uptake has been hindered by various economic, practical, attitudinal, and psychological factors.

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 the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2024 annual meeting demonstrate positive safety and efficacy data for denosumab and pegfilgrastim biosimilars.

At the Festival of Biologics USA, panelists stressed the need for patient-centered communication and education to boost comfort with biosimilars, emphasizing consistent support from health care providers despite restrictive payer policies.

Data from a Cencora study showed some misalignment in payer coverage of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) biosimilars, highlighting that while filgrastim biosimilars are often favored over the originator, reference pegfilgrastim still dominates over its biosimilars.

The approval marks the sixth for a biosimilar referencing Herceptin (trastuzumab) for the treatment of HER2-positive breast and gastric cancers.

Thanks to high biosimilar adoption rates within the community oncology setting, American Oncology Network (AON) saved upwards of $243 million between 2020 and 2023, according to a presentation at the Festival of Biologics USA conference in San Diego, California.

The global biosimilar market is projected to surge from $25.1 billion in 2022 to approximately $1.3 trillion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 17.6%, driven mainly by the increasing prevalence of cancer and the cost-effectiveness of biosimilars, as outlined in a report by Towards Healthcare.

After poor sales for its adalimumab biosimilar, Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) announces layoffs; Teva Pharmaceuticals and mAbxience partner on an oncology biosimilar; Samsung Bioepis begins a phase 3 trial for a biosimilar referencing Keytruda (pembrolizumab).

Despite more biosimilars entering the market and generating significant savings for payers and health care systems, these savings are not resulting in lower out-of-pocket (OOP) costs for patients, according to a recent study.

In its earnings report for the fourth quarter and full year of 2023, Coherus Biosciences detailed its rising revenue growth, which it partly attributed to increased sales for its pegfilgrastim and ranibizumab biosimilars.

Posters from Association of Cancer Care Centers 50th Annual Meeting and Cancer Center Business Summit (AMCCBS) and the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) highlight the benefits of incorporating biosimilars into electronic medical records and the biggest barriers for home injection of biologics.

A review looking back at the last 15 years of experience with the first filgrastim biosimilar (Zarxio) provides a detailed overview on how filgrastim biosimilars came to be and the evidence behind why oncologists have come to accept them as standard practice.

A study found combining trastuzumab biosimilar HLX02, pertuzumab, and chemotherapy was effective and safe for patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer who progressed after prior trastuzumab therapy.

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 review emphasizes that bevacizumab biosimilars demonstrate comparable efficacy to the reference product (Avastin) in the treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC) by tackling wound healing concerns in anorectal medicine.

Celltrion announced that 3 of its oncology biosimilar products have won tender contracts in France and Italy, and an experimental oral delivery device utilizing an ustekinumab biosimilar was successful in a phase 1 study.

The authors of a meta-analysis assessing several disease states found no significant differences in serious adverse events, deaths, or treatment discontinuations between patients who switched from reference products to biosimilars and those who did not.

Vizient’s most recent Pharmacy Market Outlook report showcased the success of biosimilars while also emphasizing the impact of inflation on different drug classes, particularly in oncology and immunology.

Samsung Bioepis’ Biosimilar Market Report for the first quarter of 2024 chronicles some major market trends, including which treatment spaces have quicker uptake than others, highlighting missed opportunities for savings as well as the 1-year experience of adalimumab biosimilar competition in the US.

Authors of a review of available postapproval pharmacovigilance data assessing 8 Sandoz biosimilars concluded that these biosimilars “can be used as safely as their respective reference biologics.”

The IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science’s most recent Global Use of Medicines report projected that market introductions of new biosimilar and generic drugs will increase projected losses for originator products from $111 billion to $192 billion over the next 5 years.

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.

A French study found that rituximab biosimilars, Rixathon and Truxima, were as effective and safe as the reference drug (Rituxan) in treating immune thrombocytopenia.

The FDA has approved Coherus Biosciences’ on-body injector version of Udenyca (pegfilgrastim-cbqv), making it the first biosimilar to reference Neulasta Onpro, the pegfilgrastim product that holds the majority of the pegfilgrastim market share.

The proposed bevacizumab biosimilar BAT1706 (Bio-Thera Solutions) demonstrated equivalence to the reference product (Avastin) in a phase 3 comparative efficacy trial in patients with advanced nonsquamous non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

IQVIA’s report on the impact biosimilar competition has had on Europe’s health care space identified ongoing challenges with biosimilar access and generating savings, calling for more policies focusing on fostering a sustainable market for years to come.