Biosimilars

The European Commission has approved the bevacizumab biosimilar, CT-P16, for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer, non–small cell lung cancer, advanced and/or metastatic renal cell cancer, metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum, ovarian cancer, and cervical cancer.

Adjuvant treatment with TX05 resulted in a similar disease-free survival benefit to that of trastuzumab in patients with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer.

The FDA has approved the biologics license application for pegfilgrastim-pbbk, a biosimilar referencing Neulasta for the treatment of neutropenia.

The FDA has approved the third biosimilar for bevacizumab: bevacizumab-maly (Alymsys).

The addition of sintilimab to a bevacizumab biosimilar and pemetrexed/cisplatin resulted in a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival vs chemotherapy alone in patients with EGFR-mutated, nonsquamous non–small cell lung cancer who progressed after an EGFR TKI.

The combination of sintilimab, a bevacizumab biosimilar injection, and chemotherapy resulted in a significant improvement in progression-free survival in patients with EGFR-mutated, nonsquamous, non–small cell lung cancer that as progressed following treatment with an EGFR TKI, meeting the primary end point of the phase 3 ORIENT-31 trial.

Sanjiv S. Agarwala, MD, explains that biologics have revolutionized the treatment of serious conditions, including cancer, over the past few decades, however, costs are a pressing issue for all providers and biologics are a major culprit.

Understanding the functionality and naming convention of biosimilars vs their biologic counterparts are important concepts to utilizing these agents in oncology, according to a presentation given by Teresa Knoop, MSN, RN, AOCN, during the 5th Annual School of Nursing Oncology Meeting.

The use of oncology biosimilars has expanded rapidly in the United States during the past 2 years as providers embraced a growing armamentarium of new products, according to findings from real-world data reported at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.

The rituximab biosimilar CT-P10 produced response and survival rates that were comparable to those previously reported with the reference product, along with acceptable tolerability, in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

The FDA has accepted the biologics license application for a proposed biosimilar for pegfilgrastim, which had been developed by Lupin Limited.

Although the United States is behind Europe in terms of biosimilars approved and launched, the FDA is adding more approvals each year—29 since 2014—and 73 additional biosimilar candidates are in clinical trials and/or under FDA review.

Providers and health care institutions want more real-world data on how patients respond to various biosimilar products, according to a varied panel of private practice, academic hospital, and group purchasing organization experts in a discussion at the Community Oncology Alliance virtual 2021 Community Oncology Conference in April.

The use of biosimilars to treat patients may differ across drug classes, according to a new study examining the relationship between biosimilar use and practice setting and patient/physician characteristics.

January 28, 2021 - The FDA has accepted a biologics license application for BAT1706, a proposed biosimilar to bevacizumab.

January 6, 2020 - The FDA has deferred action on the biologics license application for the proposed bevacizumab biosimilar MYL-1402O.

December 17, 2020 - The FDA has approved rituximab-arrx, a biosimilar to rituximab, for the treatment of adult patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and microscopic polyangiitis.

In our exclusive interview, Gary H. Lyman, MD, MPH, discusses the current state of biosimilars in oncology, the pathways that have been established to ensure the safe delivery of these agents to patients, and the potential effects they could have on alleviating some of the current constraints within the health care system.

Frontline sintilimab injection in combination with bevacizumab biosimilar injection resulted in a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival and overall survival compared with sorafenib in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.

Manfred Welslau, MD, discusses​ the interim results of the REFLECT trial in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

The European Commission has granted a marketing authorization to Aybintio, a bevacizumab biosimilar for the treatment of patients with the same types of cancer for which the reference product is indicated in the European Union.

Sandra Cuellar, PharmD, BCOP, discusses challenges with ​data extrapolation for biosimilars. 

Manfred Welslau, MD, discusses findings from the REFLECT interim analysis that reconfirmed the activity of the rituximab biosimilar SDZ-RTX, in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Since the US regulatory and litigation pathway for biosimilars was signed into law in March 2010, the FDA has approved 28 biosimilar products, including 16 drugs with indications for patients with cancer.

A panel of hematology-oncology experts discuss the emergence of biosimilar use in oncology.