CHMP recommends Aybintio, a bevacizumab biosimilar.-Samsung Bioepis + Merck Inc.

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) adopted a positive opinion, recommending the granting of a marketing authorisation for the medicinal product Aybintio, intended for the treatment of carcinoma of the colon or rectum, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, renal cell cancer, epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer, and carcinoma of the cervix. The applicant for this medicinal product is Samsung Bioepis NL B.V. Aybintio will be available as 25 mg/ml concentrate for solution for infusion. The active substance of Aybintio is bevacizumab, a monoclonal antibody (ATC code: L01XC07) which binds to vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), the key driver of vasculogenesis and angiogenesis, thereby inhibiting the binding of VEGF to its receptors on the surface of endothelial cells. Neutralising the biological activity of VEGF regresses the vascularisation of tumours, normalises remaining tumour vasculature, and inhibits the formation of new tumour vasculature, thereby inhibiting tumour growth. Aybintio is a biosimilar medicinal product. It is highly similar to the reference product Avastin (bevacizumab), which was authorised in the EU on 12 January 2005. Data show that Aybintio has comparable quality, safety and efficacy to Avastin.