Biocon Biologics and Mylan launch Semglee (insulin glargine injection) in US

Biocon Biologics India and Mylan announced the US launch of Semglee (insulin glargine injection) in vial and pre-filled pen presentations, approved to help control high blood sugar in adult and paediatric patients with type 1 diabetes and adults with type 2 diabetes. It is not recommended for the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis. Semglee, which received final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has an identical amino acid sequence to Sanofi’s Lantus and is approved for the same indications.

Dr Thomas Blevins, lead investigator for the INSTRIDE clinical trials, said, “The availability of Semglee provides another quality treatment option for patients living with diabetes in the US. We rigorously compared Semglee (insulin glargine injection) to the reference insulin glargine in participants with Type 1 and 2 diabetes and found that Semglee yielded similar (non-inferior) glycemic results in both groups. The safety, including immunogenicity, was similar too. As a result, this insulin was approved by the FDA for the same indications as its reference product Lantus, thus expanding access for millions of people within this important patient community.”

Mylan is offering Semglee at a wholesale acquisition cost (WAC) of $147.98 per package of five 3ml pens and $98.65 per 10ml vial, representing the lowest WAC for any long-acting insulin glargine on the market. The list price of Semglee pen is equivalent to the Lantus launch price in 2007, and the Semglee vial is listed at Lantus’s 2010 pricing. Eligible patients may also qualify for patient assistance and/or a co-pay card, similar to other medications in this class. Additionally, Mylan has submitted to FDA all necessary documentation to request approval of Semglee as a biosimilar to Lantus under the 351(k) pathway and remains confident in seeking an interchangeability designation.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive Chairperson, Biocon said, “The commercialisation of our insulin glargine in the US represents another milestone achievement for Biocon in making insulin-based therapy increasingly accessible for people with diabetes globally. We are confident that along with our long-standing partner Mylan, we will be able to address the needs of millions of patients living with diabetes in the US. Leveraging our science and global scale manufacturing expertise, we have been expanding affordable access to biosimilar insulins to patients in Japan, Australia, Europe, India and key emerging markets. The US launch of Semglee takes us closer to realising our aspiration of reaching ‘one in five’ insulin-dependent people with diabetes worldwide.”

Dr Christiane Hamacher, CEO, Biocon Biologics said: “We believe the US market represents a great opportunity for us and expect Semglee to contribute significantly to our goal of impacting five million patients’ lives and achieving $1 billion revenue by end of FY22.”

Heather Bresch, CEO, Mylan  said, “We are proud to be the first company, following the reference product, to receive FDA approval on and launch both the vial and pen presentations of an insulin glargine treatment with an identical amino acid sequence to Sanofi’s Lantus. Even more importantly, we are proud to make Semglee available to more than 30 million Americans living with diabetes in the US, providing more treatment options and increasing access.”

Rajiv Malik, President, Mylan said, “Today’s launch furthers our continued efforts to serve patients through the availability of a full portfolio of short- and long-acting insulins, which also includes our insulin as part that we expect to launch next year. Our near-term strategy to ensure the availability of Semglee will require a strategic and targeted phased launch approach. Over the long term, we expect this addition to our portfolio to play an increasingly important role within our global biosimilars and insulin analog franchise as well as our efforts to advance access to complex medicines.”

The approval for Semglee was based on a comprehensive analytical, preclinical and clinical program (including the INSTRIDE studies) which confirmed the PK/PD, efficacy, safety profile and immunogenicity of Semglee as compared to Lantus in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Sanofi’s total IQVIA sales for the 12 months ending June 30, 2020, were approximately $1.64 billion for Lantus 100 Units/mL Vial and approximately $4.36 billion for Lantus SoloSTAR Pen.

Mylan and Biocon Biologic’s insulin glargine has received regulatory approval in over 45 countries around the world and is the third product approved by FDA through the Mylan-Biocon Biologics collaboration.