The effects of cancer are far-reaching and felt by millions of people across the world every year. The incidence rate of this disease is so high that, according to the Cancer Research UK, someone in the UK is diagnosed with cancer every two minutes. Over the past 40 years, the chances of survival following diagnosis have greatly improved, however, there is still a long way to go. For many individuals, simply accessing the right treatment can be a significant challenge. With more biosimilar cancer drugs becoming available to health services across the globe, there is now a greater chance for patients to access life-saving medications that were previously out of reach.
Biosimilars are alternative versions of existing biological medicines (also known as biologics). They are developed once the patents and period of market protection for the biological drug they are based on has expired. This expiration allows other manufacturers to replicate the biological drug, known as an “originator” or “reference drug”, with a version that is highly similar and shown to be similar to the original in terms of its quality, safety, and efficacy. Much like the drugs they are based on, biosimilars are derived from the tissues, cells, and proteins of biological organisms such as animals or some microorganisms.
Although biological drugs have been used to treat some of the most deadly and difficult diseases and chronic conditions for several decades, they are also among the most expensive treatments on the market. The high costs of these drugs are accrued through their research and development, but as biosimilars are based on biological medicines that have already gone through this expensive process, they are far cheaper than the reference drug. This means that a biosimilar for a known cancer treatment such as trastuzumab, which has traditionally traded under the brand name of Herceptin, is now produced by other manufacturers and sold at lower prices. Biosimilars of trastuzumab can now be purchased under the brand names of Herzuma and Ontruzant.
This availability has significant benefits for patients and healthcare providers. According to Dr Donghoon Shin, vice-president of the medical and lifecycle safety team at Samsung Bioepis, a biopharmaceutical company developing high-quality biosimilar medicines: “In addition to creating competition and a healthy market environment, biosimilars can help patients receive treatment at an earlier stage before a disease progresses irreparably.”
He explained that a healthy and thriving biologic and biosimilar market would help to establish an important circle of sustainability within the healthcare system. By simultaneously sparking innovation for high-quality drugs, growing the market, and lowering costs, companies like Samsung Bioepis can ensure more patients not only have earlier access to treatments, but they also have more options too.
As the costs of cancer medicines are rising annually and sustainability of cancer care is becoming a critical topic for healthcare systems, the introduction of more biosimilar medicines can decrease the price of treatments for the NHS and hospital trusts. This is particularly crucial at a time when Covid-19 has introduced severe financial strains on healthcare services. By switching to biosimilar medicines, the NHS has announced it stands to save millions of pounds a year.
Given their high therapeutic potential, these medicines are already being used to treat several types of cancer, either in addressing the disease directly or managing the effects caused by other oncological treatments. An example of a direct treatment is the biosimilars for trastuzumab, which targets cancers that produce large amounts of a protein called “human epidermal growth factor receptor 2” (HER2). This protein can be found in early and advanced breast cancer and advanced cancers in the stomach and gastroesophageal junction (which regulates the flow of food and fluids between the oesophagus and the stomach). When given to a patient, trastuzumab works by attaching monoclonal antibodies – laboratory-created proteins that mimic the immune system’s ability to fight off harmful antigens like those on cancer cells – to the immune system cells, which stops the cancer cells from growing and dividing.
All new biosimilars undergo extensive testing to ensure there are no clinically meaningful differences between them and the reference medicine. According to NHS England, to abide by the principle of shared decision making, the choice to prescribe a biosimilar medicine ultimately rests with the responsible clinician in consultation with the patient. If a patient is already established on a reference drug, they can be switched to a biosimilar medicine through this process and should not expect any adverse outcomes from the alternative drug.
Ultimately the uptake of biosimilar medication to treat a prolific disease like cancer, whose consequences are unfortunately known by so many people, can only be seen as a positive.
“The demand for greater access to affordable, effective cancer treatments around the world is propelling the rapid development of biosimilars, which are often priced at around 70% below the original targeted biological therapy. It is hoped that increasing availability of biosimilars will not only improve patient access, it may potentially stimulate price competition with big brands of these medicines,” explains Shin.
To learn more about biosimilars and their potential to transform the way biologic therapies are brought to patients, visit Samsung Bioepis