21 February 2019 - - The European Commission has approved Zirabev for the treatment of metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum, metastatic breast cancer, unresectable advanced, metastatic or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), advanced and/or metastatic renal cell cancer and persistent, recurrent or metastatic carcinoma of the cervix, US-based biopharmaceutical company Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) said.

The EC approval is based on a comprehensive submission package which demonstrated biosimilarity of Zirabev and the originator product.

This includes results from the phase 3 REFLECTIONS B739-03 clinical comparative study, which showed clinical equivalence and found no clinically meaningful differences between Zirabev and the originator product in patients with advanced non-squamous NSCLC.

As part of the overall REFLECTIONS clinical trial programme, Zirabev has been studied in approximately 400 subjects.

This approval follows the positive recommendation from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use in December 2018.

Zirabev has also been filed for regulatory approval with the US Food and Drug Administration.

Pfizer has a portfolio of potential biosimilar candidates in mid- to late-stage development.

Zirabev is Pfizer's fifth biosimilar approved for use in Europe. Zirabev is a monoclonal antibody biosimilar of the originator biologic medicine, Avastin, which works by inhibiting the formation of new blood cells (angiogenesis) by specifically recognising and binding to vascular endothelial growth factor protein.

It has been studied in nearly 400 patients.