Efficacy of biosimilar granulocyte colony-stimulating factor versus originator granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in peripheral blood stem cell mobilization in de novo multiple myeloma patients.

Abstract Background aims Filgrastim and lenograstim are the standard granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) agents for peripheral blood stem cell mobilization (PBSC) in patients who undergo autologous stem cell transplantation. Methods To assess whether biosimilars are effective, we conducted a single-center, prospective study that included 40 consecutive de novo multiple myeloma patients who received cyclophosphamide 4 g/m 2 per day plus biosimilar filgrastim G-CSF to mobilize PBSC. These patients were compared with a group of 37 patients matched for age, diagnosis, previous chemotherapy and mobilization who had been treated with originator G-CSF. The mean number of CD34+ cells/μL in the peripheral blood was 199.6 ± 207.4 in the biosimilar and 192.8 ± 154.7 in the originator group ( P  = 0.87). The median number of CD34+ cells/kg recipient collected was 11.5 ± 5.8 and 12.3 ± 5.3 in the biosimilar and originator groups, respectively ( P  = 0.51). The mobilization failure rate was 2.5% and 2.7% in the biosimilar filgrastim and originator filgrastim cohorts ( P  = NS), respectively. Results Twenty-nine patients in the biosimilar group and 28 patients in the originator group underwent autologous transplantation. There were no statistically significant differences between the biosimilar and originator G-CSF cohorts in terms of hematopoietic recovery parameters and transplant-related toxicities. Conclusions The efficacy of biosimilar G-CSF appears to be equivalent to the reference G-CSF.