Celltrion Expands Contract Wins for All Products in Major European Market Italy

Stekima Achieves Success in Seven Regions in the First Half of the Year

Celltrion's autoimmune disease treatments and anticancer drugs are continuing to secure contracts in Italy, further expanding their influence in the market.

Autoimmune disease treatment 'Stekima'. Celltrion

According to Celltrion Italy, the company participated in tenders held by four regional governments earlier this year and secured contracts for the autoimmune disease treatment 'Stekima' (ingredient: ustekinumab). On August 12, the company announced that it has now also won additional bids in the Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Sardinia regions. With these achievements, Celltrion has recorded successful bids in seven regions in the first half of the year alone and plans to supply products to these areas until May next year. Since its launch in Italy in January, Stekima has rapidly expanded its tender achievements, raising expectations for its early establishment in the market.

Celltrion's flagship autoimmune disease treatment Remsima product line (IV and SC) is also continuing to secure contracts in Italy. In the infliximab tender held in Umbria, 'Remsima' was awarded the contract, and in the Puglia region, 'Remsima SC' succeeded in renewing its contract and will be supplied until May 2027. Notably, in Sardinia?previously the only region in Italy where supply had not been established?a new exclusive tender for the subcutaneous infliximab formulation was recently created, allowing Remsima SC to now be sold in all 20 regional governments across Italy.

The success of Remsima product line contracts is also having a tangible impact on prescription expansion. According to the pharmaceutical market research firm IQVIA, as of the first quarter of this year, the combined market share of the two products in Italy reached 66%, demonstrating a dominant prescription performance in the infliximab market.

The adalimumab-based autoimmune disease treatment 'Yuflyma' is also achieving strong results in Italy. Yuflyma is currently being sold in the Lazio and Umbria regions and is expected to be supplied over the next two to three years. Despite being launched three years later than competing products, it has achieved a 52% market share, surpassing half of all prescriptions and leading the market.

Celltrion's other major product group, anticancer drugs, is also performing well. 'Truxima' (ingredient: rituximab) and 'Vegzelma' (ingredient: bevacizumab) were each awarded contracts in tenders in the Lazio and Umbria regions, with supply beginning in the first half of this year. Based on these tender results, Truxima has achieved a 29% market share, Vegzelma 30%, and the breast and gastric cancer treatment 'Herzuma' (ingredient: trastuzumab) 29%, with all three launched anticancer drugs securing stable positions among the top prescription groups. Additional tenders for these products are scheduled for the second half of the year, so Celltrion's supply of anticancer drugs is expected to continue going forward.

The success of Celltrion's autoimmune disease treatments and anticancer drugs in the Italian market is largely attributed to the effectiveness of the local subsidiary's customized direct sales strategy. Since introducing a direct sales system in Italy in 2020, Celltrion has established close networks with local tender agencies and key medical professionals, implemented flexible pricing strategies, ensured supply stability, and promoted product competitiveness through active marketing efforts. With the launch of new biosimilar products in the second half of the year, the addition of high-margin items to the portfolio is expected to accelerate performance growth even further.

Yoo Wonsik, head of Celltrion Italy, stated, "In Italy, one of Europe's major pharmaceutical markets, Celltrion's autoimmune disease treatments and anticancer drugs have continued to win contracts, strengthening our influence, thanks to the high trust of key local healthcare stakeholders. In the second half of the year, we will continue to expand prescriptions and drive performance growth for all our products through new product launches and further contract wins."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.