Novartis Sanders launched two biosimilars, rixathon and erelzi, in the UK

Source: Biovalley 2017-07-06 July 6, 2017 / Biovalley Bion / -- Sandoz, a generic unit of Novartis, a Swiss pharmaceutical giant, recently announced that it has launched two new bio generic drugs, rixathon and erelzi, throughout the UK The listing of these two bio generic drugs is expected to expand the access of inflammatory disease patients and blood tumor patients to low-cost and high-quality bio drugs Rixathon is a generic drug of mabthera It is suitable for the treatment of follicular lymphoma (FL), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), chronic lymphoblastic leukemia (CLL) and a variety of immune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), granulomatous polyangitis (GPA) and microvascular diseases under microscope Inflammation (MPA) It is estimated that these diseases affect about 416500 people in the UK Erelzi is a bionic drug of Enbrel (general name: etanercept, etanercept) It is suitable for the treatment of a variety of inflammatory diseases: rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis, spinal arthritis, plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, and pediatric psoriasis It is estimated that these diseases affect more than 2 million 400 thousand people in the UK each year In 2016, the NHS spent more than £ 415 million on rituximab and etanercept Although pricing information has not yet been released, these imported biosimilars may be 30% cheaper than reference drugs This will provide the NHS with much-needed cost savings, freeing up resources to improve patient access to existing drugs and promote financial sustainability, Sanders said Sandoz is a global leader in biosimilars, the only pharmaceutical company to have five biosimilars approved in Europe Tim de gavre, head of Sandoz UK, said the launch of biosimilars in the UK is expected to significantly improve patients' access to effective treatment drugs, while providing the NHS with the necessary cost savings At present, the pharmaceutical industry is very optimistic about the prospect of bio generic drugs According to a report released by IMS last year, expanding access to biosimilars in Europe and the United States will save the health system as much as $110 billion by 2020 The report highlights the market potential of biosimilars However, the report also points out that price reduction alone is not enough to unleash the full potential of biosimilars, and balanced and adequate education and training for medical personnel, patients and taxpayers is also a key factor In the long run, it is important to ensure the sustainable development of all stakeholders, including pharmaceutical manufacturers.