Lana Pine

At months 6 and 12, the proportion of patients who were able to achieve DAS28 remission and EULAR response was similar across treatment arms.

Juliana Reed, MS, believes that there should be legislative incentives and preferred status for lower cost biosimilars in all government programs, with robust competition and accountability for PBMs not to limit access.

Juliana Reed, MS, believes that there needs to be action that addresses the anti-competitive behaviors of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and provides access to all biosimilars.

The March 2023 rheumatology month in review highlights recent data regarding nipocalimab as a treatment option for hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn and myasthenia gravis, hyperbaric oxygen therapy for fibromyalgia, and the differences among specialties in biosimilar uptake.

The Biosimilars Forum is concerned with the limited access to lower-cost biosimilars, specifically regarding the 8 adalimumab biosimilars set to launch in July, due to pharmacy benefits managers controlling access to 80% of the US market.

Although 75% of gastroenterologists believed that the efficacy of biosimilars and biologics were the same, most clinicians still preferred the brand-name drug option.

Patients who received the biosimilar reported early and significant improvements in areas of pain, NSAIDs requirement, and function.

According to a recent study, nearly 1 in 4 patients with either hypothyroidism or subclinical hypothyroidism suffer from a vitamin B12 deficiency.

The comparative safety and effectiveness of analgesic medications for acute non-specific low back pain are unclear, highlighting the need for higher quality randomized controlled trials comparing different medications.

While nipocalimab is under consideration as the first marketed drug for HDFN, clinicians consider the importance of awareness and dedicated research into the rare disease.

No significant budget increase was observed in patients with non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) receiving secukinumab.

Statistical analysis showed no differences between each pairwise comparison of the bevacizumab biosimilars, MB02-SP and MB02-DM, and the reference drug.

Bruce Feinberg, DO, explained that he and his team at Cardinal Health are constantly examining the market and the various influences that impact biosimilar uptake.

The approval was based on positive results from the phase I pharmacokinetics bridging study, which showed comparable PK and similar safety and immunogenicity of adalimumab 50 mg/mL and adalimumab high-concentration formulation.

Bruce Feinberg, DO, noted that although patients and providers ultimately understand that a biosimilar should theoretically be just as effective as a biologic, prescribers may still be wary of switching patients to a different product when they have historically experienced an excellent response to the original treatment.

Bruce Feinberg, DO, explained how Cardinal Health used its 2023 Biosimilars Report to better understand the provider's insight on industry changes that are occurring due to the expansion of biosimilars.

No sign of harmful impacts related to the mandatory biosimilar switching policy for patients with inflammatory bowel diseases treated with infliximab was observed in the cohort study.

A recent study found no association between exposure to rituximab biosimilars and hospitalization for hypersensitivity reactions compared to the biologic at initiation, at switch, or over time.

A significant decrease in indirect costs was observed in patients switching from intravenous to subcutaneous CT-P13, which was attributed to lower total costs overall.

No differences in adverse events, including infusion-related reactions, infections, and hypogammaglobulinemia, were reported among patients receiving rituximab and the biosimilar, CT-P10.

Although etanercept biosimilars demonstrated comparable efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity when compared with the reference drug, biosimilar treatment was associated with a better ACR50 response rate.

A recent study found that the biosimilar MSB11456 showed pharmacokinetic similarity, immunogenicity, and safety profiles comparable to the reference drug, tocilizumab, suggesting that it could be a cost-effective alternative for treating autoimmune disorders.

The clinician experience across specialties is crucial as the biosimilars market in the United States continues to expand.

Anisha Dua, MD, MPH, emphasized the looming workforce shortage, the challenges of attracting medical students to this field, and how practices changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pharmaceutical claims data were collected for the reference drugs and etanercept and infliximab biosimilars to analyze changes in the proportions of dispensed of and total spending on biosimilars after the new start and biosimilar switching policies began.

As similar studies evaluating CT-P17 have not been conducted in Japan, these findings support applying the biosimilarity conclusions from other studies to this patient population.

Investigators sought to analyze adherence, safety, and the clinical outcome in patients treated with the etanercept biosimilar, SB4.

Despite multi-stakeholder information campaigns supporting the use of biosimilars, barriers remain that hinder uptake.

Investigators evaluated whether the availability of the biosimilar infliximab was linked to lower out-of-pocket costs using claims from the IBM MarketScan national data set of commercially insured patients.

The approval of the adalimumab biosimilar, adalimumab-aacf, signals the beginning of Fresenius Kabi's long-term dedication to biosimilars.