Actavis, Amgen disclose compounds in biosimilars deal

Actavis Inc. (NYSE:ACT) and Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) disclosed on Friday the four cancer drugs for which they are developing biosimilars under a 2011 deal. The drugs include Herceptin trastuzumab, Avastin bevacizumab, Rituxan rituximab and Erbitux cetuximab. Actavis, which last week changed its name from Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc., said Amgen will disclose additional details about the programs, including the stages of development, at an investor meeting on Feb. 7 (see BioCentury, Jan. 2, 2012).

Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) and its Genentech Inc. unit market Herceptin and Avastin. Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) and Genentech co-market Rituxan in the U.S., while Roche markets it as MabThera elsewhere. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY) and the ImClone Systems Inc. subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE:LLY) market Erbitux in North America, while Merck KGaA (Xetra:MRK) markets it elsewhere. ...