Celltrion’s Truxima takes over 30 percent of Europe market share

Celltrion Healthcare Co.`s Truxima.

Celltrion Healthcare Co., the marketing and distribution arm of South Korean biosimilar maker Celltrion Inc., said on Monday that its blood cancer biosimilar Truxima has eaten up 30 percent share of the original drug market in Europe as of June, this year.

According to the company, a recent report by healthcare consulting firm IQVIA, formerly IMS Health, showed that market share of Truxima reached 32 percent of original anticancer drug Rituxan (rituximab) market in 18 European countries as of June, this year. The market share in five major countries - the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain, in particular, reached 34 percent.

Truxima is a biosimilar of Roche Holding Ltd.’s blockbuster Rituxan - sold as MabThera in Korea - used for non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer, and autoimmune disease rheumatoid arthritis. The original drug is developed by Biogen Idec Inc. and marketed by Roche.

Celltrion has been expanding sales of Truxima in Europe after launching the biosimilar in the UK in April, last year, after approval from European Medicines Agency in February. The company plans to sell the drug in almost all of Europe by the first half of next year, up from current 22 countries.

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