News in brief
Success for Amgen as Europe welcomes first Avastin biosimilar
The European Commission has approved Mvasi, Amgen and Allergan's biosimilar version of Roche’s cancer drug Avastin (bevacizumab).
In November, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) adopted a positive opinion for Amgen and Allergan’s Mvasi (previously known as ABP 215) and last week the European Commission (EC) pushed through its approval for the treatment of certain types of cancers.
The biosimilar, which was co-developed by Allergan and Amgen but will be marketed in the EU by Amgen, becomes the first version of Avastin to be approved in the region. In 2016, the biologic pulled in 1.8bn CHF ($1.9bn) in European sales for Roche.
In September 2017, Mvasi received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). US Avastin sales in 2016 stood at just under $3bn.
