Practice

Study in Patients With IBD Finds Good Long-Term Efficacy of CT-P13

December 31st 2018

By Kelly Davio

Biologic drugs can effectively treat inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but the cost of these products can be prohibitive. Biosimilars such as CT-P13 (Remsima, Inflectra), an infliximab biosimilar referencing Remicade, have the potential to drive down treatment costs and enhance access to biologics for the patients who need them.

Study: Vedolizumab In the First Line Brings Down IBD Treatment Costs

December 29th 2018

By Samantha DiGrande

Article

Vedolizumab is approved by the FDA for the treatment of moderate to severe Crohn disease or ulcerative colitis, both forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), who have had an inadequate response or loss of response to immunomodulators, tumor necrosis factor inhibitors, or corticosteroid therapy.

Biosimilar Hematology Roundup: December 2018

December 28th 2018

By Kelly Davio

Article

On the heels of the FDA approval of Celltrion’s rituximab biosimilar Truxima in November 2018, December saw the publication of a variety of new data on biosimilars used in hematology.

Study: Pegfilgrastim May Be an Option for Patients With Germ Cell Tumors

December 26th 2018

By Kelly Davio

Article

Germ cell tumors are common malignancies, and chemotherapy with a regimen of bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin (BEP) has improved the prognosis for patients with these tumors. However, BEP involves significant myelosuppression, and the safety of pegfilgrastim for the prevention of febrile neutropenia related to myelosuppression has not been well investigated in patients with this tumor type.

Infliximab Could Help Adults With Kawasaki Disease

December 26th 2018

By The Center for Biosimilars Staff

Article

While Kawasaki disease (KD) typically affects children, it can, in rare cases, affect adults, leading to coronary artery abnormalities and acquired heart disease. Given that the disease is rare in adults and that its etiology is not fully understood, diagnosis and treatment of KD in adults can be challenging.

Bevacizumab Plus Chemotherapy Improves PFS in Early Ovarian Cancer

December 25th 2018

By Samantha DiGrande

Article

A recent study evaluated the impact of adding bevacizumab to chemotherapy treatment for patients who were newly diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The results, published in Gynecologic Oncology, found that while the addition of bevacizumab greatly improved progression-free survival (PFS), it did not improve overall survival.

Systematic Review Finds No Difference in Efficacy of Short-Acting and Long-Acting G-CSF Agents

December 25th 2018

By Kelly Davio

Article

A recent systematic review of the literature reported on randomized controlled trials and nonrandomized studies on the use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor therapies (G-CSFs) to reduce the incidence of febrile neutropenia, and found that short- and long-acting therapies, when dosed according to guidelines, have little difference in their efficacy.

Adding Trastuzumab to Chemotherapy Improves OS, Review Concludes

December 25th 2018

By Samantha DiGrande

Article

A recent study sought to investigate the overall survival (OS) advantage of the addition of trastuzumab to chemotherapy for patients with human epidermal growth factor 2-positive early breast cancer.

French Study Finds CT-P13 Equivalent to Reference Infliximab in CD

December 16th 2018

By Kelly Davio

Article

The authors concluded that in their analysis of real-world data, the effectiveness of the biosimilar was equivalent to that of the reference product in patients with Crohn disease (CD) who were naïve to therapy with infliximab, and no difference was observed in terms of safety between the 2 therapies.

New Treatment Guideline for PsA Recommends First-Line Anti-TNF Biologics

December 5th 2018

By The Center for Biosimilars Staff

Article

This week, the American College of Rheumatology and the National Psoriasis Foundation released a new treatment guideline for psoriatic arthritis (PsA) that contains evidence-based recommendations on caring for patients with this inflammatory disease.