Biosimilar Bevacizumab Enables Medicare Cost Savings, Expands Cancer Treatment Access

A recent study published in the Journal of Medical Economics examines the cost-efficiency of transitioning Medicare patients from the reference biologic bevacizumab to various FDA-approved biosimilars for first-line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) and metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC). This shift has potential to substantially reduce drug acquisition costs and expand treatment access without raising overall Medicare spending. The analysis uses a simulation model from a Medicare payer perspective focusing exclusively on drug costs and leveraging 2024 average sales price data. The model estimated that annually, approximately 6,579 patients with mCRC and 3,843 patients with mNSCLC receive bevacizumab as part of their systemic therapy under Medicare. Treatment regimens modeled align with clinical guidelines, including bevacizumab-containing FOLFOX for mCRC and induction therapy with bevacizumab plus paclitaxel and carboplatin for mNSCLC, followed by maintenance dosing. Dosing calculations were based on average weight and body surface area data for Medicare beneficiaries. Results demonstrated that switching to the biosimilar bevacizumab-bvzr provides the greatest cost savings, yielding per-patient per-month savings of $4,205 in mCRC (68% cost reduction) and $8,410 in mNSCLC (70% cost reduction). Cumulatively, converted patients could save Medicare $27.7 million and $32.3 million monthly for mCRC and mNSCLC populations respectively. These savings could be reinvested to fund thousands of additional patient-months of therapy under a budget-neutral scenario. Other biosimilars also offered cost reductions, though with less financial impact. Bevacizumab-awwb showed moderate savings, while bevacizumab-adcd's financial benefits were minimal. The study notes limitations including assumptions of steady patient numbers, quarterly fluctuations in pricing, and exclusion of administration costs, which may influence real-world applicability. Overall, findings emphasize that biosimilars like bevacizumab-bvzr have significant potential to optimize Medicare oncology drug spending by extending treatment access without increasing budgetary requirements. This insight is particularly relevant as Medicare's expenditure on biologics for solid tumors continues to rise. Stakeholders in payer strategy, oncology formularies, and health economics may find these results informative for guiding policy and coverage decisions related to biosimilar adoption.