Celltrion expands footprint in Latin America with flagship oncology drugs

South Korea’s biopharmaceutical giant Celltrion Inc. has solidified its presence in South America after winning supply contracts for its flagship cancer treatments in Brazil and Guatemala.

The company announced on Thursday that it has successfully extended its supply contract for Herzuma (trastuzumab), a breast and gastric cancer treatment biosimilar of Roche Inc.’s Herceptin, with the Brazilian federal government through March 2026.

This is the fifth consecutive year that Celltrion has won the trastuzumab biosimilar supply contract in Brazil, the biggest pharmaceutical market in Latin America. It has snagged a contract there since 2020, a year after entering the market.

As government tenders account for 97% of Brazil’s trastuzumab market, Celltrion’s successful bid is expected to effectively secure its dominance in the country, ensuring stable revenue for the Korean biotech company in the market this year.

In Guatemala, Celltrion also landed a contract for Vegzelma (bevacizumab), a treatment for metastatic colorectal and breast cancers, with the state agency Guatemalan Social Security Institute (IGSS), ahead of the copycat drug’s planned launch in the country next month.

IGSS contracts control 95% of the country’s bevacizumab market, giving Celltrion a near-monopoly position there from day one.

The contract is expected to lead to additional orders of the Korean company's other copycat drugs in the country in the future.

Celltrion’s Truxima (rituximab), a treatment for blood cancers, currently holds 70% market share in Guatemala, making it the leading prescribed drug in its category.

Following the latest wins, which underscore Celltrion’s growing dominance in Latin America’s oncology biosimilars market, the Korean biosimilar giant plans to introduce other medicines in the region to extend its growth streak.

It plans to roll out the world’s only subcutaneous formulation of infliximab, Remsima SC, and the autoimmune disease treatment Yuflyma (adalimumab) in Latin America to expand its lineup in the region.

It will also seek to foray into other countries in the region.

Write to Dae-Kyu Ahn at powerzanic@hankyung.com

Sookyung Seo edited this article.