Sandoz has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Taiwan-based biotechnology manufacturing and development company EirGenix, Inc, for a proposed trastuzumab biosimilar referencing Herceptin.
Under the terms of the deal, EirGenix will develop and manufacture the biosimilar, while Sandoz will commercialize the product upon approval in all markets other than China and Taiwan. EirGenix will receive an upfront payment, milestone payments, and a share of profits from the biosimilar.
Sandoz indicated in a statement that this collaboration will allow the company to use its in-house resources to perpetuate its internal pipeline while further expanding its oncology portfolio and developing its hospital presence.
“Every year, approximately 300,000 people worldwide are diagnosed with HER2-positive breast cancer, which tends to spread more quickly than HER2-negative tumors, making swift treatment important. While targeted therapy is available, high out-of-pocket costs lead to limited treatment in the [United States,] and reimbursement issues have resulted in varying uptake in Europe,” said Stefan Hendriks, global head of biopharmaceuticals for Sandoz, in a statement. “Introducing biosimilars can help create earlier and expanded access to this important medicine, which is why I am so excited about the potential for this collaboration.”
