Trastuzumab is a monoclonal antibody mainly used as a targeted therapy to treat certain breast cancers and other cancers.

Under the agreement, Richter is granted with the exclusive distribution rights for Europe, the CIS region and Latin American countries and also obtains the pilot technology for further development, the press statement says. Furthermore, the agreement states that Richter needs to make an upfront payment upon signature of the contract, with further milestone payments to be made depending on the progress of the technology transfer and clinical program. In addition, further sales-related royalties will become payable to DM Bio subsequent to the launch of the product. 

“The development of biosimilar products has been considered an important strategic initiative for Richter in becoming a specialty pharma company, therefore we have made significant efforts to establish our presence in the field of biotechnology,” said Richter Managing Director Erik Bogsch. “This agreement is considered a significant step towards finding strategic partners for the development and distribution of biosimilar products.”

A biosimilar medicine is a biological medicine that is developed to be highly similar to an already authorized biological medicine (the ‘reference medicine’), the press statement explains. Biosimilar medicines do not have any significant differences from the reference medicine in terms of quality, safety or efficacy, it adds.