On 14 April 2025, Sandoz announced that it has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Amgen in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in relation to etanercept.  Sandoz’s complaint, filed on 11 April, alleges that Amgen has “unlawfully extended and entrenched its monopoly” for Enbrel® (etanercept) by “blocking competition from more cost-effective biosimilar competitors, including Sandoz’s etanercept biosimilar, Erelzi®”.

The complaint relates to Amgen’s purchase of exclusive US rights to certain etanercept-related patents owned by Roche (referred to as the Brockhaus Patents).  According to Sandoz, the purchase of those rights was anti-competitive, as was Amgen’s use of certain Brockhaus Patents (US 8,063,182 and US 8,163,522, having a latest expiry date in 2029) to “eliminate competition in the US etanercept market by blocking biosimilar entrants, including Sandoz”.

Amgen commenced BPCIA litigation against Sandoz in February 2016, including for infringement of the ‘182 and ‘522 patents.  Erelzi® received FDA approval in August 2016.  The ‘182 and ‘522 patents were held to be valid and infringed and Sandoz was prevented from launching Erelzi® in the US by way of an injunction that remains in place today.  Sandoz argues that “were it not for Amgen’s unlawful acquisition” of the Brockhaus Patents, Sandoz “would have launched its etanercept biosimilar in the US at least as early as 2019” (when certain Amgen patents expired).

Sandoz is seeking damages and an injunction to prevent Amgen from using the Brockhaus Patents to block biosimilar competition and to allow Sandoz to launch Erelzi® in the US “as soon as possible”.

Erelzi® was approved and launched in Europe in June 2017.

On 14 April, Celltrion announced that it has secured interchangeability designation in the US for its high concentration (100mg/mL) citrate free adalimumab biosimilar, Yuflyma® (adalimumab-aaty).

Celltrion’s high concentration formulation was first approved by the FDA in May 2023, and the company applied for interchangeable status in January 2024.

The first high concentration biosimilar to AbbVie’s Humira® to receive an interchangeability designation was Alvotech and Teva’s Simlandi®, which was approved in February 2024.

There are a number of high concentration adalimumab biosimilars approved in the US, including: Samsung Bioepis’ Hadlima™, Amgen’s Amjevita™, Sandoz’s Hyrimoz®, and Boehringer Ingelheim’s Cyltezo®.

On 10 April 2025, Aurobindo subsidiary, CuraTeQ Biologics, reported its successful Phase I results for BP16, biosimilar to Amgen’s Prolia® (denosumab).

The Phase I study, which included 204 subjects from Australia and New Zealand, showed that BP16 demonstrated comparable safety, pharmacodynamics and immunogenicity profiles to both the European and US versions of Prolia®; successfully meeting all the predefined endpoints.

CuraTeq anticipates completion of its Phase 3 study in women with postmenopausal osteoporosis by May/June 2025.

To date, there have been three sponsors with denosumab biosimilars approved in Europe: Celltrion’s Stoboclo®/Ozenvelt® (February 2025), Samsung Bioepis’ Obodence™ and Xbryk™ (February 2025), and Sandoz’s Wyost® and Jubbonti® (May 2024).  The EMA has accepted MAAs for a number of other denosumab biosimilars including for STADA/Alvotech (AVT03, October 2024), Teva (TVB-009P, October 2024), Gedeon Richter (July 2024), Fresenius Kabi (FKS518, July 2024), and Shanghai Henlius/Organon (HLX14, May 2024).

There are four sponsors with denosumab biosimilars approved in the US: Fresenius Kabi’s Conexxence® and Bomyntra® (March 2025), Celltrion’s Stoboclo® and Osenvelt® (March 2025), Samsung Bioepis’ Ospomyv™ and Xbryk™ (February 2025), and Sandoz’s Wyost® and Jubbonti® (March 2024).  A number of denosumab biosimilar BLAs are currently under review by the FDA, including for: Alvotech/Dr Reddy’s (March 2025), Amneal/mAbxience (March 2025), Gedeon Richter/Hikma (December 2024), Organon/Shanghai Henlius (October 2024), and Teva (October 2024).  Accord/Intas have also submitted an aBLA for INTP23 (denosumab, date of submission unknown).

On 8 April 2025, The Bio reported that Dong-A ST has launched Imuldosa®, biosimilar to J&J’s Stelara® (ustekinumab) in the UK and Ireland, following its launch in Germany in January 2025.

Imuldosa® (previously known as DMB-3115) was developed jointly by Dong-A Socio Holdings and Meiji Seika Pharma and Dong A-ST acquired the development and commercialisation rights in 2020.  In July 2021, Dong-A ST signed a global out-licensing agreement with Intas Pharmaceuticals under which Intas received exclusive commercialisation rights to the ustekinumab biosimilar worldwide, excluding Japan, Korea and certain other Asian countries.

Imuldosa® received European approval in December 2024 and FDA approval in October 2024.  In October 2023, Accord BioPharma reached a settlement with Janssen that allows Accord to launch Imuldosa® in the US no later than 15 May 2025.  According to The Bio, Imuldosa is on track for a May 2025 US launch.

Samsung Bioepis has successfully defeated Janssen Biotech’s appeal in the Hague Court of Appeal in which Janssen sought to overturn an earlier ruling that Samsung Bioepis did not infringe Janssen’s Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPC) by manufacturing and stockpiling Samsung Bioepis’ ustekinumab biosimilar, Pyzchiva®, for export outside the European Union.

The Hague Court of Appeal confirmed that the SPC Regulation’s manufacture-for-export exemption did not require trade licences at the time of notification nor that the export countries be duty-free.  The Hague Court of Appeal therefore held that stockpiling for export was permissible under the exemption, facilitating a “Day-1 entry” – for generic and biosimilar medicines after the SPC expires – into the market of the intended export country.

Pyzchiva® was developed by Samsung Bioepis, and was approved in Europe in April 2024.  It is commercialised by Sandoz in EEA, Switzerland, UK, US and Canada pursuant to a deal entered into in September 2023 between Sandoz and Samsung Bioepis.  Sandoz launched Pzychiva® in Europe in July 2024, for the treatment of plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease and paediatric plaque psoriasis.  Although Pyzchiva® was not the first approved ustekinumab biosimilar product in Europe (it followed approval of Alvotech/Stada’s Uzpruvo® in January 2024 and announcement of its launch on 22 July 2024), it was the first ustekinumab biosimilar to be available in all reference medicine strengths.

On 8 and 11 April 2025, respectively, BMS announced that the FDA has approved Opdivo® (nivolumab) plus Yervoy® (ipilimumab) as a first-line treatment in two new indications:

• for adult and paediatric patients (12 years and older) with unresectable or metastatic microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) colorectal cancer (mCRC); and
• for unresectable or metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma.

The FDA granted the BLA for colorectal cancer Breakthrough Therapy Designation and Priority Review status in February this year.  Applications for the same combination therapy and indication are under evaluation in Australia and Japan.

The hepatocellular carcinoma indication has been recently approved in Europe (March 2025) and remains under consideration in Australia (October 2024).

On 28 February 2025, Amgen filed petitions for inter partes review (IPR) challenging the validity of three of BMS’ US patents relating to methods of treatment using nivolumab and ipilimumab for cancer generally.  Amgen currently has a nivolumab biosimilar under development, having enrolled patients in a Phase 3 study evaluating the efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of Amgen’s ABP 206 compared with Opdivo®.  The study is expected to be completed in 2027.

On 8 April 2025, Bayer announced that it has filed an application with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for approval of Eylea™ 8mg (aflibercept 8mg, 114.3 mg/ml solution for injection) for the treatment of macular oedema following retinal vein occlusion (RVO).

Eylea™ 8mg was approved in Europe for nAMD and DME in January 2024, with extended treatment intervals of up to 5 months.  On 10 February 2025, Bayer announced that it had submitted a marketing authorisation application to the EMA for expanded treatment intervals of up to 6 months with Eylea™ 8 mg for both nAMD and DME.

Eylea™ 8mg (known as Eylea® HD in the US) is also approved for nAMD and DME in Japan (January 2024), the UK (January 2024), Korea (April 2024) and Australia (June 2024).  Eylea HD® was approved in the US in August 2023 for nAMD, DME and diabetic retinopathy.

An OcuClick pre-filled syringe presentation of aflibercept 8mg for nMAD and DME is approved in Canada (February 2025), Australia (October 2024) and Europe (September 2024).

Eylea™ 8mg was jointly developed by Bayer and Regeneron.  Regeneron holds the exclusive rights to both 2mg and 8mg Eylea® in the US, while Bayer holds those outside the US, where the companies equally share the profits from sales of the products.

There are currently seven aflibercept 2mg biosimilars approved in Europe: Celltrion’s Eydenzelt® (February 2025), Biocon’s Yesafili® (September 2023), Sandoz’s Afqlir® (November 2024), Samsung Bioepis/Biogen’s Opuviz™ (SB15) (November 2024) and Formycon/Klinge’s Baiama® and Ahzantive® (January 2025) and Amgen’s Pavblu® (April 2025).  Amgen’s Skojoy® received a positive recommendation for marketing approval from the CHMP in January 2025, while Alvotech/Advanz Pharma and Altos Biologics have submitted MAA’s to the EMA for aflibercept 2mg biosimilars.

On 7 April 2025, Teva and Samsung Bioepis announced the US launch of Epysqli® (eculizumab-aagh),  biosimilar to Alexion’s Soliris®.  According to the joint announcement, Epysqli® will be offered at a 30% discount of the Wholesale Acquisition Cost (WAC) of Soliris®.

This makes Epysqli® the second available eculizumab biosimilar in the US, following the launch of Amgen’s Bkemv® (eculizumab-aeeb) in March 2025.  The timing of the US launch of Bkemv® was governed by a settlement reached by Amgen and Alexion in May 2020, permitting launch from 1 March 2025.

Epysqli® was launched in Germany, Italy and Spain in October 2023 and in Korea in April 2024.  The UPC (June/July 2024) and the UPC Court of Appeal (December 2024) refused to grant preliminary injunctions against Samsung Bioepis and Amgen in relation to the sale of their eculizumab biosimilars in the EU.

On 7 April 2025, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced that the European Commission has approved an indication extension for Darzalex® (daratumumab) subcutaneous formulation in combination with bortezomib, lenalidomide and dexamethasone for adult patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) regardless of transplant eligibility.  The indication expansion was recommended by the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) in February this year.

The EC approved the same indication in October 2024, however, only for patients who are eligible for an autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT).  The new approval removes that limitation.

There are a number of daratumumab biosimilars currently under development.  In February 2025, Shanghai Henlius announced that it has entered into a licence agreement with Dr. Reddy’s for HLX15, biosimilar to Darzalex® and Darzalex Faspro® (daratumumab and hyaluronidase-fihi).  In December 2024, Celltrion announced that the US FDA approved its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for a global Phase 3 clinical trial of its daratumumab biosimilar, CT-P44, which followed its European IND submission and entry into the global phase 3 trial procedure in November 2024.

On 6 April 2025, ChosunBiz reported that Samsung Bioepis has received approval in South Korea for Obodence™, biosimilar to Amgen’s Prolia® (denosumab).

Obodence™ is Samsung Bioepis’ 10th biosimilar to be approved in South Korea, including following Epyztek® (ustekinumab) in April 2024, Afilivu® (aflibercept) in February 2024, and Episcli® (eculizumab) in January 2024.

Samsung Bioepis’ denosumab biosimilars were approved in February 2025 in both the US (marketed as Ospomyv™/Xbryk™) and Europe (marketed as Obodence™/Xbryk™).  In August 2024, Amgen commenced US BPCIA patent infringement proceedings against Samsung Bioepis in relation to its denosumab biosimilars.  Those proceedings are ongoing.