Biosimilars, also known as follow-on biologics, are made by a different business but look and work much like the original medicine. Biosimilars have found utility in the treatment of a wide range of acute and chronic medical conditions. One application of biosimilars is the recording of brain electrical activity. Biotherapeutic products that are extremely comparable to reference biologic drugs are known as biosimilars or follow-on biologics. Its chemical structure is intricate, and it contains cells or other living things.
Cancer is widely recognized as a significant contributor to sickness, with profound social and economic consequences for individuals. According to the 2018 data released by the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer was responsible for more than 9.6 million deaths worldwide. According to the same source, around 1 in 6 deaths are attributed to cancer. The direct health system expenses of cancer are anticipated to exceed USD 4.5 billion. This led to an augmentation of investments from multiple nations.
Moreover, Australia enhanced its cancer research and associated efforts through the utilization of USD 252 million in funding between 2016 and 2018. In December 2019, the United States government augmented its expenditure on medical research by USD 2.6 billion. The government allocated an additional USD 296 million for cancer research funding. Such factors propel market growth.
The exponential expansion of the biotechnology sector has generated a need for secure and economically viable pharmaceuticals to reduce the current healthcare expenses. Biosimilars are less expensive than the medications produced by the original manufacturers due to cost-efficient production methods. Multiple studies suggest that biosimilars, which are derived from living organisms, are cost-effective. Biosimilars have demonstrated a marginally reduced or nearly equivalent efficacy compared to their corresponding reference biopharmaceuticals. This is expected to create opportunities for market growth over the forecast period.
Europe is the most significant global biosimilars market shareholder and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 13.5% during the forecast period. Europe has had the greatest market share due to the presence of a well-defined regulatory environment for biosimilars and significant biopharmaceutical companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Merck, Sanofi, and GlaxoSmithKline. Moreover, a well-developed healthcare infrastructure and increasing product launches have supported regional market expansion. Since the first biosimilar drug was licensed in Europe in 2006, the area has been at the forefront of biosimilar regulation. Over the last ten years, the area has approved the most biosimilars worldwide.
Similarly, Celltrion and Teva Pharmaceuticals' biosimilar Truxima (rituximab-abbs) was approved in Europe in 2017 and introduced in the United States in 2019. Truxima was used by more than 60% of the people in Europe. The EU has set the benchmark for biosimilar pharmaceutical legislation by creating a strong global framework for their approval and influencing biosimilar development.
Key companies in the global biosimilars market are Pfizer, Inc., Novartis AG, Biocon Ltd., TEVA Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Celltrion Pharma, Amgen, Inc., Biocon, Mylan N.V., and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd., among others.