A Randomised, Double-Blind Trial to Compare the Efficacy, Safety, and Immunogenicity of the Biosimilar Ustekinumab FYB202 with Reference Ustekinumab in Patients with Moderate-to-Severe Plaque Psoriasis

IntroductionBiosimilars allow more patients access to affordable treatment options and help reduce the financial burden on healthcare systems. This multicentre trial compared the efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of the approved biosimilar ustekinumab FYB202 with reference ustekinumab.MethodsEligible patients were >= 18 years old with stable moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis for >= 6 months and inadequate treatment response to or intolerance of >= 1 previous systemic treatment. Patients were randomised (1:1) to double-blind treatment with FYB202 or reference ustekinumab; patients in the reference group who achieved Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 75 percent improvement at week 28 were re-randomised to FYB202 or reference product. The primary efficacy endpoint was percent improvement in PASI score from baseline to week 12. Therapeutic equivalence was demonstrated if, depending on the regulatory requirement with respect to the significance level, the two-sided 95% and 90% confidence intervals (CIs) were within the pre-defined equivalence intervals of +/- 11% and +/- 10%, respectively.ResultsA total of 392 patients were randomised to FYB202 (n = 197) or reference ustekinumab (n = 195). Baseline characteristics were well balanced between groups. Mean percent improvement in PASI score at week 12 was equivalent between FYB202 and reference ustekinumab with an estimated least-squares mean treatment difference of 3.27% and the two-sided 95% (- 0.90%, 7.44%) and 90% (- 0.22%, 6.77%) CIs fully contained within the pre-defined equivalence margins. Safety and immunogenicity profiles were comparable between groups. Switching from reference product to FYB202 had no clinically relevant effect on efficacy, safety, or immunogenicity.ConclusionFYB202 demonstrated therapeutic equivalence to reference ustekinumab in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.Trial RegistrationNCT04595409; EudraCT 2019-004364-21.