Dr. Welslau on the Rationale for the REFLECT Trial With Rituximab Biosimilar

Manfred Welslau, MD, a specialist in Internal Medicine, as well as Hematology and Oncology with Onkologie Aschaffenburg, discusses the rationale of the prospective REFLECT trial with the rituximab (Rituxan) biosimilar SDZ-RTX (Rixathon) in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

In the REFLECT trial, SDZ-RTX was administered in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (Deltasone) to patients with DLBCL. The REFLECT trial was conducted even though the rituximab biosimilar was already approved in Germany, says Welslau. The agent was approved because of the significant benefit it provided to patients with follicular lymphoma. Additionally, there was exploration of all other indications of rituximab, even in rheumatic diseases.

More data are needed to understand how the biosimilar performs in DLBCL. As such, the REFLECT trial was launched to confirm equal efficacy and toxicity between reference rituximab and the Sandoz rituximab biosimilar, concludes Welslau.