Chinese biosimilar maker Shanghai Henlius Biotech Inc. won EMA approval for its Zercepac, a biosimilar to Roche Holding AG’s Herceptin (trastuzumab) on July 28. Henlius CEO Scott Liu told BioWorld that Zercepac will be the first Chinese monoclonal antibody biosimilar to enter the EU market, setting a precedent for Chinese drugmakers seeking to join the global race in biosimilars.
Chinese biosimilar maker Shanghai Henlius Biotech Inc. won EMA approval for its Zercepac, a biosimilar to Roche Holding AG’s Herceptin (trastuzumab) on July 28. Henlius CEO Scott Liu told BioWorld that Zercepac will be the first Chinese monoclonal antibody biosimilar to enter the EU market, setting a precedent for Chinese drugmakers seeking to join the global race in biosimilars.
Biosimilars referencing Amgen Inc.’s rheumatoid arthritis drug, Enbrel (etanercept), could remain sidelined in the U.S. for nearly another decade, following a Federal Circuit decision Wednesday affirming the validity of two patents protecting etanercept and its manufacturing methods.
When it comes to guidance on interchangeables, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has some guidance for the FDA: Be more definite.
One simple four-letter word can make a world of difference in how quickly biosimilars and interchangeables bring full competition to the U.S. marketplace of biologics, a handful of companies and industry groups told the FDA in comments on a draft guidance concerning the labeling of follow-ons that are licensed for fewer indications than the reference biologic.
As if the FDA doesn’t have enough on its hands with COVID-19, Monday is deeming day. That’s the day nearly 100 drugs approved via new drug applications (NDAs) are to be deemed biologics, courtesy of the 2010 Biologic Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA).
“For those of us who believe in a free market, it is really important that the market works well,” FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said March 9 at a public workshop on ensuring a U.S. biologic marketplace that includes sustainable biosimilar and interchangeable competition.
The first wave of biosimilars began lapping at U.S. shores five years ago when the FDA approved Sandoz Inc.’s Zarxio on March 6, 2015, giving it a label identical to that of its reference biologic, Amgen Inc.’s Neupogen (filgrastim). But the tsunami of biosimilars, and the multibillion dollars of savings they were expected to bring, has yet to wash ashore.
With deeming day a little more than a month away, the FDA is taking final steps to ease the transition of simple proteins approved as new drug applications (NDAs) to biologic license applications (BLAs). The March 23 change will open drugs such as insulin and various hormones to new competition, likely bringing in the next wave of biosimilars. And this time, interchangeability could be riding the crest.
HONG KONG – Global pharmaceutical company Mundipharma Pte Ltd. is gaining exclusive commercialization rights in Taiwan and Hong Kong to four biosimilar candidates from South Korean biopharma Samsung Bioepis Co. Ltd. targeting immunology and oncology.
