Henlius and Intas receive Positive CHMP Opinion for HETRONIFLY® (approved as HANSIZHUANG in China) in European markets as First-Line Treatment for adult patients with Extensive-Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer

- HANSIZHUANG ® (serplulimab) was the first anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) approved for first-line treatment of ES-SCLC

- HETRONIFLY® (serplulimab) is expected to become the first anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody available in Europe for first-line treatment of ES-SCLC 

AHMEDABAD, India, Sept. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Intas Pharmaceuticals Limited ("Intas") has announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has issued a positive opinion recommending approval of HETRONIFLY® (serplulimab, approved as Hansizhuang in China), in European markets.

Serplulimab, a recombinant humanised anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) injection, is the first innovative monoclonal antibody developed by Henlius. It has been granted orphan drug status designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Commission (EC) for the treatment of Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC).

Serplulimab will be commercialised by Intas through its subsidiary, Accord Healthcare Ltd (Accord), across more than 30 countries in Europe. As one of the key players in the global oncology market, Accord has a longstanding commitment to oncology with proven commercial capabilities and currently supplies around one in three injectable oncology medicines in Europe. This positive opinion from CHMP marks another step closer for both Henlius and Intas to provide serplulimab for patients in Europe.

Dr. Jason Zhu, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Henlius, stated: "The positive opinion from CHMP signifies a major milestone in our efforts to accelerate the global reach of our products, and further validates Henlius' patient-centred R&D approach and commitment to global strategy. We look forward to the formal approval of this treatment in Europe, bringing more treatment options and hope to patients there and worldwide."

Paul Tredwell, Executive Vice President of EMENA at Accord, said "I am thrilled with the CHMP's positive opinion. This not only strengthens our current partnership with Henlius but also means serplulimab is on track to become part of the treatment landscape for extensive stage small cell lung cancer patients who currently have limited options and face a poor prognosis."

Alex Falgas, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Accord said "The CHMP's positive opinion on serplulimab is a pivotal moment in our mission to provide world-class cancer treatments to patients in Europe. This strengthens our oncology portfolio and reinforces Accord's commitment to alleviating the global cancer burden, ensuring greater access to innovative therapies for those in need."

According to GLOBOCAN 2022, lung cancer is the most diagnosed and the first mortality cancer around the world. There were more than 2.48 million new cases of lung cancer worldwide in 2022, accounting for 12.4% of all new cancer cases. ^[1] Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) accounts for 15%–20% of the total number of lung cancer cases, and is associated with early metastasis, rapid disease progression, and an extremely poor prognosis.

The positive opinion from CHMP is primarily based on ASTRUM-005, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled international multi-centre clinical study, which evaluated the efficacy and adverse event profile of the PD-1 inhibitor serplulimab plus chemotherapy compared with placebo plus chemotherapy as first-line treatment in patients with ES-SCLC. 

References:
^[1] Bray F, Laversanne M, Sung H, et al. Global cancer statistics 2022: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2024;74(3):229-263. doi:10.3322/caac.21834

About Henlius
Henlius (2696.HK) is a global biopharmaceutical company with the vision to offer high-quality, affordable, and innovative biologic medicines for patients worldwide with a focus on oncology, autoimmune diseases, and ophthalmic diseases. Up to date, 6 products have been launched in China, 3 have been approved for marketing in overseas markets, 24 indications are approved worldwide, and 3 marketing applications have been accepted for review in China and the EU, respectively. Since its inception in 2010, Henlius has built an integrated biopharmaceutical platform with core capabilities of high-efficiency and innovation embedded throughout the whole product life cycle including R&D, manufacturing and commercialization. It has established global innovation centre and Shanghai-based commercial manufacturing facilities certificated by China, the EU and U.S. GMP.

Henlius has pro-actively built a diversified and high-quality product pipeline covering over 50 molecules and has continued to explore immuno-oncology combination therapies with proprietary HANSIZHUANG (anti-PD-1 mAb) as backbone. Apart from the launched products HANLIKANG (rituximab), the first China-developed biosimilar, HANQUYOU (trastuzumab, trade name: HERCESSI™ in the U.S., Zercepac^® in Europe), a China-developed mAb biosimilar approved in China, Europe and U.S., HANDAYUAN (adalimumab), HANBEITAI (bevacizumab) and HANNAIJIA (neratinib), the innovative product HANSIZHUANG has been approved by the NMPA for the treatment of MSI-H solid tumours, squamous non-small cell lung cancer (sqNSCLC) and extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC), and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), making it the world's first anti-PD-1 mAb for the first-line treatment of SCLC. What's more, Henlius has conducted over 30 clinical studies for 16 products, expanding its presence in major markets as well as emerging markets.

About Intas
Intas is one of the leading multinational pharmaceutical formulation development, manufacturing, and marketing companies in the world. The company has set up a network of subsidiaries under the name Accord for marketing and selling in the highly regulated markets of EU, US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, Asia Pacific, CIS and MENA regions. Intas is present in 85+ countries worldwide with more than 69% of its revenue coming from global business, particularly the highly regulated markets of the EU and the US.

Currently ranked 6th (As per IQVIA TSA AUGUST 2023 MAT) in the Indian pharmaceutical market, it is also the largest privately owned Indian generic pharmaceutical company. While Intas has established leadership in key therapeutic segments like CNS, Cardiovascular, Diabetology, Plasma Therapy, Cell and Gene Therapy, Gastroenterology, Urology and Oncology in India, the company is known for its range of products in Oncology and other hospital-based therapeutic segments in the EU and US.

Intas' success and growth are a direct influence of Intas' extensive R&D and manufacturing capabilities. Intas operates sixteen formulation manufacturing facilities, of which eleven are in India, and the rest in the U.K., Greece, and Mexico. Between them, the facilities are accredited by top global regulators such as the US FDA, EMA, MHRA, TGA, and others. Every year, the company invests 6-7% of its revenues in R&D. Currently; Intas has over 10,000 product registrations worldwide and a strategic pipeline of 300+ high-value FTF/FTM, Biosimilars and NDDS products.