October, 2019 | The Health
Highlight
Dr Matin agrees that the trust in biosimilars among
health specialists in Malaysia is indeed lacking.
EFFICACIOUS AND SAFE: The focus for Duopharma
Biotech in developing their halal products is to be safe
and high quality, says Aida.
17
Dr Paul Cornes presents a solid case study
for the use of biosimilars in the UK.
Biosimilars are safe
A biologically similar version of cancer medication can be an extremely cost-effective alternative.
And yes, it is just as good as the original product
D
uopharma Biotech Berhad
had recently organised an
educational event targeted
mainly to specialists in oncol-
ogy for their launch of their
latest trastuzumab biosimilar
to treat breast cancer patients. The product is
in partnership with Biocon, a pharmaceutical
company specialising in biosimilars based
in India.
The event was done as a strengthening
strategy for Duopharma Biotech to have
local oncologists acquire further confidence
in biosimilars. The main speaker for the day
was Dr Paul Cornes, Oncologist and part of
the European School of Oncology Working
Party on the Access to Innovation in Cancer
Treatment based in Bristol.
The issue at hand
According to Dr Cornes, the UK is currently
the largest user of biosimilars, as various
types of it made to treat various diseases has
been introduced and prescribed to patients
for 13 years with about 80 percent utilisa-
tion on average. The same can’t be said in
other countries across Europe – let alone in
Malaysia.
The issue in Malaysia regarding the use
of biosimilars is that the trust among health
specialist to prescribe them leaves a lot to be
desired. And when the trust among doctors
are lacking, so do the trust among patients.
Dr Matin Mellor Abdullah, Consultant
Clinical Oncologist agrees with the notion.
“I do see that the trust among doctors for
biosimilars is low in Malaysia. I personally
would prescribe biosimilars to my patients
as I know that the quality does not falter
compared to the original medicine. I can’t
speak the same for other oncologists in the
country however.”
The lower cost:
A strength or a curse?
Besides the perceived quality of biosimilars,
The meticulous process of certification
is key in Dr Cornes efforts in championing
biosimilars. For Malaysia, the regulatory
authority in pharmaceutical is the National
Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) -
of which Dr Cornes believes should be more
vocal on their role as licensors for biosimilars.
“Extensive regulations, guidelines, and
licensing processes makes for high-quality
product don’t you think?,” he exclaims.
Moreover, the years of data collected from
the use of biosimilars in the UK can be made
a solid case study for the effectiveness and
safety of it in Malaysia.
the medication creates a certain scepticism
among doctors and patients because of its
cost-effectiveness as well. To put it simply,
biosimilars are mainly cheaper compared to
the original product. And for us Malaysians,
cheaper would always be perceives as worse.
“There is a mindset among Malaysians that
cheaper medications means lesser effective-
ness. This encompasses the patients and the
doctors as well,” adds Dr Matin.
Strict regulation as indicator
So how do one get people to trust in the use
of biosimilars to treat for their severe condi-
tions? What indicators and proof that can
be presented so that Malaysians can save
thousands of ringgit on medication?
Dr Cornes offers his response: “The thing
about biosimilars many need to understand
is that the extremely meticulous process of
developing it and getting it certified makes
it a tremendously high-quality product
comparable to the original medication it is
based on.”
The thing about biosimilars many need to
understand is that the extremely meticulous process
of developing it and getting it certified makes it a
tremendously high-quality product comparable to
the original medication it is based on.” – Dr Cornes
(From left) Noor
Aida Jaafar, Chua Hui
Ming (Senior Principal
Assistant Director
of NPRA), Dr Paul
Cornes, Dr Saunthari
Somasundaram
(President for the
National Cancer
Society Malaysia,
and Dr Matin Mellor
Abdullah.
Educational drive forward
Speaking about the efforts to have biosimilars
be prescribed as a viable medication, we also
caught up with Duopharma Biotech’s General
Manager for Ethical Specialty Business, Noor
Aida Jaafar. She says that for their newly
launched product, it is important to be in
continuous communication with oncologists
in Malaysia to build their confidence.
“We strive on making Duopharma's
Trastuzumab biosimilar more accessible
to the Malaysian public, as it is more cost-
effective while having the same quality of
efficacy and safety as the reference product.
We will definitely be in communication with
the oncologists to gain their confidence in the
product. We at Duopharma Biotech focus on
quality, efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness
hence improving access to the patients.”
Duopharma Biotech is also a company that
prides itself on being the pioneering company
to provide halal solutions in pharmaceuticals
in Malaysia, and they are not treating the
biologics any different. “It is work in progress
for our biologics to be certified halal. This,
we believe, can help to further strengthen
the level of confidence among patients in
the country for biosimilars just as our other
halal-certified products had been,” says Aida.
— The Health
What is biosimilar?
A biosimilar is a term used to describe a biologic medical
product that is a biologically similar version of an innovator
product that is manufactured by a different company. Biosimilars
are officially approved versions of innovator products and can be
manufactured when the innovator product’s patent expires.