27 February 2019 - China’s National Medical Products Administration announced Monday that it has approved the country's first biosimilar drug — a copy of Roche’s drug Rituxan for treatment for lymphoma.
Biosimilars are nearly identical copies of biologics -- medicines made from living cells that must be stored under special conditions— already approved by a regulator.
The biosimilar drug made by Fosun Pharma’s joint venture subsidiary Shanghai Henlius Biotech will break the monopoly of Switzerland’s Roche, which has been the only supplier of Rituxan in China.