May 15th 2024
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.
Study: Pegfilgrastim May Be an Option for Patients With Germ Cell Tumors
December 26th 2018Germ cell tumors are common malignancies, and chemotherapy with a regimen of bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin (BEP) has improved the prognosis for patients with these tumors. However, BEP involves significant myelosuppression, and the safety of pegfilgrastim for the prevention of febrile neutropenia related to myelosuppression has not been well investigated in patients with this tumor type.
Bevacizumab Plus Chemotherapy Improves PFS in Early Ovarian Cancer
December 25th 2018A recent study evaluated the impact of adding bevacizumab to chemotherapy treatment for patients who were newly diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The results, published in Gynecologic Oncology, found that while the addition of bevacizumab greatly improved progression-free survival (PFS), it did not improve overall survival.
Researchers Report on Clinical Program for Proposed Trastuzumab Biosimilar, HLX02
December 23rd 2018During the European Society for Medical Oncology’s Asia 2018 annual meeting, held in Singapore from November 23 to November 25, a research team presented an update on the clinical program for HLX02, a proposed trastuzumab biosimilar referencing Herceptin. The proposed biosimilar is being developed by the Chinese firm Shanghai Henlius Biotech.
QL1101 Shows Similarity to Reference Bevacizumab in NSCLC in Phase 3 Trial
December 21st 2018During last month’s European Society for Medical Oncology Asia 2018 annual meeting, held in Singapore from November 23 to November 25, researchers presented data demonstrating the biosimilarity of QL1101 with reference bevacizumab (Avastin).
Bevacizumab Biosimilar, IBI305, Meets Primary End Points in 2 Clinical Trials
December 13th 2018Chinese biologics developer Innovent has announced that its proposed bevacizumab candidate, IBI305, has met its primary end points in 2 randomized, head-to-head clinical trials that compared the biosimilar to the brand-name bevacizumab (Avastin).
United States Still Lags Behind Other Nations in Adopting Biosimilar Filgrastim
December 11th 2018Since the advent of biosimilar filgrastim, patient access to the prophylaxis of chemotherapy-induced febrile neutropenia has improved in many regulatory territories, yet concerns remain about whether the United States is keeping pace with the rest of the world in biosimilar uptake and associated patient access.
SB3 Shows Comparable Efficacy and Safety to Reference Trastuzumab at 1 Year
December 10th 2018Samsung Bioepis has announced that a 1-year follow-up study comparing event-free survival in patients treated with SB3, a biosimilar trastuzumab (approved in Europe as Ontruzant) showed that the biosimilar has similar safety and efficacy profiles to the reference Herceptin.
Biosimilar Beats Subcutaneous Rituximab on Cost Savings in NHL
December 5th 2018The launch of biosimilar rituximab is an eagerly awaited event among US healthcare stakeholders who are cognizant of the high cost of intravenously (IV) administered rituximab in treating non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). At the same time, another innovation in rituximab delivery—a subcutaneously administered rituximab formulation—has the potential to save both cost and time.
CT-P10 Is Similar to Reference Rituximab in Previously Untreated Advanced Follicular Lymphoma
December 4th 2018The study’s authors concluded that, at the median follow-up of 23 months, the data demonstrated comparable progression-free survival, sustained response, and overall survival between both the biosimilar and the reference product.
Tbo-Filgrastim Delivers VHA Cost Savings, but Could a Change of Strategy Do More?
December 4th 2018For health systems like the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), where controlling costs while providing high-quality care is of heightened concern, achieving the best value for money in the prophylaxis of neutropenia can help to control the cost of cancer care.
More Data Underscore the Safety and Efficacy of CT-P10 in Hematological Conditions
December 4th 2018Celltrion’s CT-P10, a biosimilar rituximab that was FDA approved under the brand name Truxima in November 2018, is already in wide use for a host of indications in many regulatory territories. During this week’s 60th Annual Meeting and Exposition of the American Society of Hematology in San Diego, California, multiple research teams are reporting data that underscore the safety and efficacy of CT-P10 in hematological conditions.
Biosimilar Filgrastim Performs in Stem Cell Mobilization
December 3rd 2018In 2016, the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency switched from the brand-name filgrastim, Neupogen, to a biosimilar, Apotex’s Grastofil, for stem cell mobilization prior to autologous stem cell transplants. In a study presented at the American Society of Hematology’s Annual Meeting, researchers sought to determine the safety and efficacy of using a biosimilar for this setting.
Using Biosimilar Filgrastim Does Not Impact Plerixafor Use in Transplantation Candidates
December 2nd 2018Patients who are candidates for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) require adequate collection of stem cells, and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor agents (G-CSFs) are typically used for stem cell mobilization while plerixafor is used to increase the yield of mobilized stem cells. While the biosimilar filgrastim agent Zarxio has become a more widely used, cost-saving G-CSF option in this context, little research has been conducted on whether the use of the biosimilar rather than its reference, Neupogen, has an impact on plerixafor use in patients undergoing AHSCT.
Addition of 4 Older Drugs Could Improve Bevacizumab's Effect in Glioblastoma
November 22nd 2018Bevacizumab, an anti–vascular endothelial growth factor treatment for which 1 biosimilar has been approved to date, has been shown to improve quality of life for patients with glioblastoma—and to delay disease progression—but has not prolonged patients’ overall survival. However, recent research suggests that using 4 older drugs together with bevacizumab could provide a more effective treatment protocol.
Study: Biosimilar Filgrastim Use Is Concordant With EORTC Guidelines
November 21st 2018Some studies have found that granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) therapies are underused for the prophylaxis of febrile neutropenia (FN) in Europe, but the widespread availability of cheaper biosimilar options has led to increased use. A new study, published in BMC Cancer, sought to examine the use of the biosimilar filgrastim, Zarzio, in relationship to European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) guidelines.
Study Finds ABP 215 and Bevacizumab Demonstrate PK Similarity in Japanese Men
November 18th 2018The researchers say that their data were consistent with the pharmacokinetic equivalence previously demonstrated in a single-dose PK study that included 202 healthy adult men in the United States and European Union, and thus add to the evidence of ABP-215 as a high-quality biosimilar to bevacizumab for use in Japan.
First-Line Bevacizumab More Effective in MBC Not Previously Treated with Taxanes
November 14th 2018Among long-term responders, first-line bevacizumab-based therapy is more effective in patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC) who were not previously treated with taxanes, a recent Spanish study suggests.
Research Demonstrates Biosimilars' Increasing Role in Cancer Treatment
November 13th 2018During this week’s International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research 2018 European meeting, the role of biosimilars in oncology is the subject of several research presentations, all of which underscore the importance of these agents in increasing patient access and driving down costs.
Community Oncologists Divided on the Value of Biosimilars
November 9th 2018During the Community Oncology Alliance Payer Summit, held October 29-30, 2018, The Center for Biosimilars® had the opportunity to sit down with several oncologists to discuss their opinions on and experiences with biosimilars.