Sandoz, the generics arm of Swiss drugmaker Novartis, has announced plans to launch five biosimilars of major oncology and immunology biologics across key global markets by 2020, aimed at broadening patients’ access to treatment. The company said the launches would be enabled by an "aggressive regulatory submissions strategy" of 11 filings in Europe and the US by the end of 2017, six of which have already been completed. The most recent of these was the European Medicines Agency’s acceptance of rituximab in May 2016.

Subject to regulatory requirements and approvals, Sandoz' upcoming launches will include biosimilars of Enbrel (etanercept), Humira (adalimumab), Neulasta (pegfilgrastim), Remicade (infliximab), and Rituxan (rituximab), which collectively generated sales of nearly $44 billion in 2015.

Sandoz CEO Richard Francis said access to medicines remains the single largest unmet healthcare need in developed and developing countries alike. “Biologics have revolutionized treatment of many disabling and life-threatening diseases but far too many people who need these medicines are not able to access them," he commented.

By 2020, Sandoz will also have invested more than $1 billion into expanding its biomanufacturing facilities at Schaftenau and Kundl in Austria. The company said its early-stage pipeline has additional assets in oncology as well as other specialty therapeutic areas with plans to start new programs every year.