ASCO 2017 | Biosimilar trastuzumab: a cost effective alternative for breast cancer treatment

Justin Stebbing, MD, PhD, from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK, discusses the use of biosimilars for cancer treatment. Prof. Stebbing explains that biosimilars have been used by physicicans in the UK for supportive care for a long time. However, they have not been very familiar with their use as therapeutic drugs. This is changing now with the development of biosimilars for the treatment of various diseases. He explains this using the case of the biosimilar trastuzumab for breast cancer treatment, which has been found to be exactly the same but much cheaper. This means that it will save money, help with healthcare utilization and offset the very high prices of some of the newer drugs.
Recorded at the American Society of Oncology (ASCO) 2017 Annual Meeting held in Chicago, IL.