Cancer drug: Dr Reddy's Labs, Alvotech ink pact to codevelop biosimilar candidate to Keytruda

Hyderabad: Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. and Alvotech, a global biotech company specializing in the development and manufacture of biosimilar medicines for patients worldwide, have announced that the companies have entered into a collaboration and license agreement to codevelop, manufacture and commercialize a biosimilar candidate to Keytruda (pembrolizumab) for global markets.

Keytruda (pembrolizumab) is indicated for the treatment of numerous cancer types.

In 2024, worldwide sales of Keytruda were US$29.5 billion. The collaboration combines Dr. Reddy’s and Alvotech’s proven capabilities in biosimilars, thereby, speeding up the development process and extending the global reach for this biosimilar candidate.

Under the terms of the agreement, the parties will be jointly responsible for developing and manufacturing the biosimilar candidate and sharing costs and responsibilities. Subject to certain exceptions, each party will have the right to commercialize the product globally.

“We are very pleased to enter into this collaboration for pembrolizumab with Dr. Reddy’s. This agreement demonstrates Alvotech’s ability to leverage its dedicated R&D and manufacturing platform for biosimilars, accelerating the expansion of our pipeline by pursuing growing global markets. It further enables us to increase the availability of cost-effective, critical biologic medications to patients world-wide,” said Róbert Wessman, chairman and CEO of Alvotech.

"We are happy to collaborate with Alvotech for the pembrolizumab biosimilar. This demonstrates our ability to develop and manufacture high quality and affordable treatment options for patients worldwide. Additionally, oncology has been a top focus therapy area for us and this collaboration will further enhance our capabilities in oncology, as pembrolizumab currently represents one of the most critical therapies in immuno-oncology,” said Erez Israeli, CEO of Dr. Reddy’s.

Keytruda is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.