Biocon announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) has approved the Company’s first-to-file application for Yesafili™ (aflibercept-jbvf), an interchangeable* biosimilar aflibercept. YESAFILI, a vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitor used to treat several different types of ophthalmology conditions, is a biosimilar of its reference product EYLEA® (aflibercept).
The approval of YESAFILI marks Biocon Biologics’ expansion into the ophthalmology therapeutic area in the United States following a steady track record of approval in Europe (September 2023) and the United Kingdom (November 2023) where it was the first biosimilar aflibercept to be approved. The Company has secured a launch date in Canada of no later than July 1, 2025, under the terms of a settlement agreement.
Shreehas Tambe, CEO & Managing Director, Biocon Biologics Ltd., said: “The FDA approval of YESAFILI (aflibercept) as the first interchangeable biological product to Eylea is a significant milestone for Biocon Biologics marking our entry into Ophthalmology, a new therapeutic area in the United States. YESAFILI is approved for the treatment of neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration, macular edema following retinal vein occlusion, diabetic macular edema and diabetic retinopathy. This approval builds on our successful track record of bringing the first interchangeable insulin, SEMGLEE®, the first biosimilar Trastuzumab, OGIVRI®, and the first biosimilar Pegfilgrastim, FULPHILA®, to patients in the United States.”
