Eye on Pharma: Egis to Distribute Mundipharma's Pelmeg in Eastern Europe

Mundipharma, a network of independent companies that operates in 120 countries worldwide and distributes a number of biosimilars in the European Union, has inked a deal with Budapest-based Egis Pharmaceuticals to distribute its biosimilar pegfilgrastim, Pelmeg, in 4 Eastern European markets: Hungary, Romania, Lithuania, and Latvia.

In a statement announcing the partnership, Alberto Martinez, president and chief executive officer of Mundipharma Europe, said that the arrangement will help to reduce healthcare spending in the region while increasing patient access to this important therapy.

Pelmeg, originally developed by Cinfa Biotech and later acquired by Mundipharma when it bought Cinfa and its portfolio of products, was authorized by the European Commission in November 2018 following a positive recommendation from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use in September 2018.

The biosimilar gained a positive recommendation on the basis of a comprehensive package of data including a comparability study of pharmacodynamics and immunogenicity.

Mundipharma announced in February 2019 that it had launched Pelmeg in Germany, the Netherlands, and Ireland. In March 2019, it announced that its partner Napp Pharmaceuticals had launched the biosimilar in the United Kingdom.

Mundipharma has garnered extensive experience in European launches of biosimilars; the company is engaged in an ongoing partnership with Korean drug maker Celltrion to commercialize Remsima (biosimilar infliximab), Truxima (biosimilar rituximab), and Herzuma (biosimilar trastuzumab) in Europe.