Background: Biosimilars are additional treatment options that are approved based on robust analytical and clinical comparisons with their reference biologic. At the time of initial approval, the full safety profile of a biosimilar is inferred from the reference biologic. Nonetheless, there are still lingering concerns related to the long-term safety of biosimilars. Therefore, we reviewed the post-approval pharmacovigilance data for eight marketed biosimilars from one Marketing Authorization Holder (MAH) to summarize their safety experience in a real-world setting for up to 18 years since their first biosimilar launch.
Methods: Post-approval cumulative patient exposure and safety experience for eight Sandoz biosimilars [adalimumab (Hyrimoz®), epoetin alfa (Binocrit®), etanercept (Erelzi®), filgrastim (Zarzio®), infliximab (Zessly®), pegfilgrastim (Ziextenzo®), rituximab (Rixathon®), and somatropin (Omnitrope®)] was summarized based on the available pharmacovigilance data from Periodic Safety Update Reports (PSURs) and the corresponding health authority-authored PSUR assessment reports, where available, as of 31 January 2023. Exposure to all biosimilars was calculated in patient treatment days (PTD) except for rituximab, which was expressed in number of patient doses (PD).
Results: The combined post-approval cumulative exposure to seven out of the eight marketed Sandoz biosimilars was more than 1.3 billion PTD and for rituximab more than 1.8 million PD. Overall, a critical analysis of the cumulative safety data of all eight Sandoz biosimilar PSURs concluded that the overall benefit-risk profile of each remains favorable and is consistent with the respective reference biologics.
Conclusions: This is one of the largest reviews of post-approval biosimilar pharmacovigilance data to date by one MAH. The real-world experience of all eight marketed Sandoz biosimilars for up to 18 years demonstrates that Sandoz biosimilars can be used as safely as their respective reference biologics. Therefore, patients and healthcare providers can be confident in the clinical benefit and safety of Sandoz biosimilars. It is reasonable to believe that similar conclusions about safety may be reached for other biosimilars developed and approved to the high standards as are already in place by major health authorities such as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The long-term safety of biosimilars demonstrated here provides strong support for the concept of biosimilarity.
© 2023. The Author(s).