Biosimilars: what's around the corner?

Infliximab is an effective treatment for patients with refractory inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and is well established in treatment algorithms. Biosimilar infliximab will become available in the UK from early 2015 as the patent for originator infliximab (Remicade) ends. Potentially this is a time of uncertainty for IBD teams and patients as, although biosimilar infliximab is approved for the same indications as the originator product, there is a lack of high-quality data supporting its use in IBD. The attraction of biosimilars is that they will result in a significant reduction in the price of infliximab which it is hoped will ease patient access to anti-tumour necrosis factor (TNF) therapy. Biologics are medications that are manufactured in or derived from a biological product. A biosimilar is a medicinal product based on the same design as a biological drug. However, the production of biosimilars is vastly more complicated than that of simple generic molecules and, as a result, biosimilars must meet strict specifications regarding their efficacy and safety laid down by regulatory authorities such as the FDA and EMA (box 1). Box 1 ### Definitions of a biosimilar from the FDA and EMA FDA definition: EMA definition: …