European Commission approves Celltrion Healthcare’s Vegzelma™ (CT-P16, biosimilar bevacizumab) for the treatment of multiple types of cancer
2022.08.19
European
Commission approves Celltrion Healthcare’s Vegzelma™ (CT-P16, biosimilar bevacizumab)
for the treatment of multiple types of cancer
·
Vegzelma™ offers European
patients living with certain types of breast, lung, renal, colon, rectum,
ovarian and cervical cancers a new, safe, and effective treatment option at an
affordable price
·
Approval is based on
clinical trial data demonstrating Vegzelma™ is highly similar to Avastin®[1] (bevacizumab)
·
Vegzelma™ is Celltrion’s
third oncology biosimilar approved by the European Commission
FRIDAY 19 AUGUST, 2022 - INCHEON, SOUTH
KOREA ?Celltrion Healthcare
announced today that the European Commission (EC) has approved Vegzelma™ (CT-P16),
a biosimilar bevacizumab referencing EU-approved Avastin®, for the treatment ofmetastatic
breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, advanced and/or metastatic renal
cell cancer, metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum, ovarian cancer and
cervical cancer.
“The European Commission’s approval of Vegzelma™ will
increase access to treatment for patients living with certain types of cancer
at an affordable price,” said Kevin Byoung Seo Choi, Senior Vice President and
Head of Marketing Division at Celltrion Healthcare. “With proven similarities
in efficacy and safety compared to the reference product Avastin®, Vegzelma™
will be available to treat some of the most commonly diagnosed cancers, which
collectively affect hundreds of thousands of European patients each year.”
The EC approval of Vegzelma™ follows the
recommendation for marketing authorisation issued by the Committee for
Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA)
in June 2022.
Today’s approval is based on the totality of evidence,
including the phase III pivotal trial in patients with metastatic or recurrent
non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. Results showed that, as a first-line
treatment, Vegzelma™ is highly similar to the reference product in terms of
efficacy, safety and pharmacokinetics.[2]
Vegzelma™ (CT-P16) is Celltrion’s third oncology
biosimilar approved for use in the EU, following the approval of Truxima®
(biosimilar rituximab) and Herzuma® (biosimilar trastuzumab). Vegzelma™
was also filed for regulatory approval with the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) in September 2021. Approval is expected during the third
quarter of 2022.
-
ENDS -
Notes
to Editors:
About
Celltrion Healthcare
Celltrion Healthcare is committed to delivering innovative and affordable
medications to promote patients’ access to advanced therapies. Its products are
manufactured at state-of-the-art mammalian cell culture facilities, designed
and built to comply with the US FDA Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP)
and the EU GMP guidelines. Celltrion Healthcare endeavours to offer
high-quality cost-effective solutions through an extensive global network that
spans more than 110 different countries. For more information, please visit: https://www.celltrionhealthcare.com
About
Vegzelma™ (CT-P16, biosimilar
bevacizumab)
Vegzelma™is
an anti-cancer monoclonal antibody treatment biosimilar to Avastin® (bevacizumab).
Vegzelma™is
a recombinant humanised monoclonal
antibody which binds to VEGF, the key driver of
vasculogenesis and angiogenesis, and thereby inhibits the binding of VEGF
to its receptors Flt-1 (VEGFR-1), and kinase insert domain receptor (KDR)
(VEGFR-2), on the surface of endothelial cells. Neutralising the biological
activity of VEGF regresses the vascularisation of tumours, normalises remaining
tumour vasculature, and inhibits the formation of new tumour vasculature,
thereby inhibiting tumour growth.[3] In
the EU, Vegzelma™ isindicated
for the treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal
cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, metastatic renal cell carcinoma, ovarian cancer,
advanced cervical cancer and metastatic breast cancer.
References
[1]Avastin® is a
registered trademark of Genentech Inc.
[2]Ohe Y et al., Randomized Phase
III Study Comparing the Efficacy and Safety of CT-P16, a New Biosimilar, to
Reference Bevacizumab (Avastin®) In Patients With Metastatic or
Recurrent Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC). Proceedings: American Association
for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2022; April 8-13, 2022 New Orleans,
Louisiana.
[3]European Medicines Agency
Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC), Avastin®. Available at https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/product-information/avastin-epar-product-information_en.pdf [Last accessed August 2022].