November 21, 2024

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Celltrion's Herzuma (Celltrion)

South Korean biosimilar giant Celltrion will continue to supply trastuzumab biosimilar Herzuma to Brazil, the company announced Friday.

The company won the bid to supply a trastuzumab biosimilar to the Brazilian Federal Government for the fifth consecutive year.

Under the contract, Celltrion will provide 660,000 vials of Herzuma through 2025.

Celltrion remains the sole trastuzumab provider for the Brazilian government, with its Herzuma accounting for more than 50 percent of the market annually.

The company noted that since 2020, Herzuma has maintained its position as the top-prescribed trastuzumab biosimilar in Brazil.

“Celltrion has been continuing its efforts to increase its market share in Brazil’s largest pharmaceutical market,” Kang Kyung-doo, head of Celltrion’s Latin America division, said. “We aim to build on this success with upcoming products like Vegzelma (bevacizumab), which we plan to launch later this year."

Brazil, home to more than 217 million, is the largest pharmaceutical market in Latin America, accounting for more than half of the region’s total market. The country’s public healthcare system, overseen by the federal government, represents around two-thirds of this market, as announced by the company.

In addition to Herzuma, Celltrion has also secured the federal bid for its infliximab biosimilar, Remsima, for three consecutive years and recently received a request from the Brazilian government to supply an additional 90,000 vials, 25 percent more than initially contracted.

Celltrion’s prospects have been further boosted by a recommendation from the Brazilian government to include Remsima SC, the world’s only subcutaneous infliximab, in its public healthcare system -- a move that would strengthen the company’s market position.

By Park Li-na (linapark@heraldcorp.com)