The European Commission (EC) has approved Celltrion Healthcare’s 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.
The 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.
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.
