On December 2, 2020, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. submitted a Citizen Petition to the FDA, requesting that it interpret the term “strength” in section 351(k) of the Public Health Service Act for parenteral solutions to mean “total drug content,” without regard to concentration. Boehringer Ingelheim maintains that this correction would…
Below are some highlights from third quarter 2020 earnings reports recently released by biologics and biosimilars companies: Biogen reported a decrease in year over year (YoY) revenue of 6% to $3.4 billion, but a 13% increase to $208 million in biosimilar revenue. It reported the following YoY revenue for each…
Alvotech and DKSH recently announced an expansion of their strategic partnership to commercialize six new biosimilar candidates for the Asian markets. The press release does not name the biosimilar candidates, but states that they “address[] multiple therapeutic areas.” The companies previously entered into an exclusive license partnership for Alvotech’s adalimumab…
On September 19, 2020, Lotus Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Lotus”) and Chong Kun Dang Pharmaceutical Corp. (“CKD”) announced that they have entered into a commercialization agreement in connection with CKD’s biosimilar darbepoetin alfa, a second-generation epoetin indicated for the treatment of anemia associated with chronic renal failure. According to Lotus’ press…
Today, Cadila Pharmaceuticals announced the launch of its adalimumab biosimilar, Cadalimab™, in India. HUMIRA® (adalimumab) is approved to treat rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and psoriasis. Cadila’s press release noted that “[i]n an effort to strengthen their biosimilar product portfolio, Cadalimab™ is the fourth biosimilar launched in the last…
The U.S. FDA recently approved Genentech’s Phesgo™ for the treatment of early and metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, in combination with chemotherapy. Phesgo™ is a fixed-dose combination of pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and hyaluronidase, administered via subcutaneous injection. Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics recently announced that it received approval in Japan for its adalimumab…
We have previously reported on the class action suit against AbbVie alleging misconduct and antitrust violations in connection with AbbVie’s assertion of its patents against biosimilar manufacturers to prevent the sale of biosimilar versions of Humira® (adalimumab) in the United States. On June 8, 2020, in a Memorandum and Opinion…
The Korean Herald reported today that Celltrion has applied for the European Medicine Agency’s approval of CT-P17, a Humira (adaliumumab) biosimilar. According to the Korean Herald, Celltrion “expects to introduce CT-P17 to the European market in about a year’s time, which is how long the EMA typically takes to review.” …
On Feb. 13, 2020, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) granted market authorization for Amsparity, Pfizer’s adalimumab biosimilar. Amsparity is approved for use in treating the same set of conditions as Humira in Europe. In 2018, Pfizer announced that it had reached a license agreement with AbbVie that allowed Pfizer to…
Last week, Almirall signed an agreement with WuXi Biologics to collaborate on multiple bispecific antibodies targeting dermatology conditions, including atopic dermatitis. Almirall’s press release indicated that, “[u]nder the terms of the agreement, Almirall has access to WuXi Biologics’ proprietary antibody platforms including WuXiBody™ to discover multiple novel bispecific antibodies.” This…