Practice

In ASCO Survey, a Majority of US Patients With Cancer Report Anxiety Related to Cost

October 30th 2019

By Kelly Davio

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) today released its third annual National Cancer Opinion Survey, results of which highlight the added stress that the financial burden of treatment places on patients with cancer.

ACG Case Studies Report on AEs, and Their Resolution, With Biosimilar Infliximab

October 29th 2019

By Kelly Davio

This week, clinicians gathered in San Antonio, Texas, for the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG)’s 2019 meeting, where a number of presentations focused on the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. During the congress, 2 studies presented addressed adverse events (AEs) associated with—one of which was resolved by—the use of biosimilar infliximab, CT-P13 (Inflectra).

Canadian Gastroenterology Groups Issue Joint Position That Takes Aim at Nonmedical Switching

October 25th 2019

By Kelly Davio

The Canadian Association of Gastroenterology and Crohn’s and Colitis Canada this week announced a joint statement on biosimilars in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The paper, which is slated to appear in the Journal of the Canadian Association of Gastroenterology, recommends that patients stable on biologic treatment should not be subject to nonmedical switching, and recommends against automatic substitution of biosimilars for their references.

Pooled Analysis Underscores Safety of Biosimilar Infliximab, CT-P13, in Patients With IBD

October 24th 2019

By The Center for Biosimilars Staff

During the United European Gastroenterology Week 2019, held October 29-23 in Barcelona, Spain, researchers from Celltrion presented pooled data from 3 postmarketing studies of CT-P13 in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that underscore the safety of the biosimilar.

Cost May Drive Medicare Patients to Delay or Forego Treatment for Blood Cancer, Report Suggests

October 24th 2019

By Kelly Davio

A new research report from Milliman, commissioned by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS), found that fewer than half of patients with blood cancer received treatment within 3 months of diagnosis, and LLS says that costs may be keeping patients from getting care.

Switching Between 2 Biosimilars of Infliximab Does Not Impact Treatment Persistence in IBD, Study Finds

October 23rd 2019

By Kelly Davio

While providers are increasingly comfortable with switching patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) from reference biologics to biosimilars on the basis of a wealth of reassuring data on the safety and efficacy of such transitions, there are fewer data available about switching among multiple biosimilars of the same reference.

At UEG 2019, Data Shed Light on Monitoring of Biosimilar Adalimumab, Imraldi, in IBD

October 22nd 2019

By Kelly Davio

Therapeutic drug monitoring is of particular importance in optimizing treatment for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) who are receiving therapy with anti–tumor necrosis (anti-TNF) drugs like adalimumab. This week, during the United European Gastroenterology (UEG) Week 2019 meeting, held in Barcelona, Spain, researchers will present new findings on monitoring serum trough levels of Samsung Bioepis’ biosimilar adalimumab, Imraldi, in patients with IBD.

"Not So Different": Are We Ready for Biosimilar Rituximab in the United States?

October 20th 2019

It’s widely expected that the United States will see launches of one or both of the FDA-approved rituximab biosimilars, Ruxience and Truxima, in the coming months, but just how ready is the United States to bring these products to the clinic, especially given the fact that subcutaneously administered reference rituximab has taken on such a key place in clinical practice, and given the fact that both biosimilars have so-called “skinny labels” because of issues related to intellectual property and exclusivities?

Oncologist Experience With Rituximab Factors Into Early Discontinuation Rate

October 15th 2019

By Allison Inserro

The less experience an oncologist has with administering rituximab, the more likely a Medicare beneficiary with non-Hodgkin lymphoma is to discontinue treatment, according to a new study. In addition, early rituximab discontinuation was associated with inferior lymphoma-specific and overall survival.

Study of Spontaneous AE Reports Finds Signal for Infection With Reference, but Not Biosimilar, Infliximab

October 15th 2019

By The Center for Biosimilars Staff

The Japanese Adverse Drug Event Report (JADER) database, a large, published database managed by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency for pharmacovigilance, collects spontaneous reports as a means to detect adverse events (AEs) related to drugs, and a newly published study used the JADER data to assess AEs related to the reference infliximab and to the biosimilar, CT-P13.