Helen Knows She Can Rely on Biosimilars

Thursday December 17, 2020

Diagnosed in her late twenties with incurable stage four non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Helen, now 41 and a wife and mother of two in Florida, knows she can rely on biosimilars to help when needed, so she can live her life to the fullest.

After years of trial and error with several different treatment options that left her feeling debilitated, Helen found balance with biosimilars — safe, effective alternatives to brand-name biologics. These life-changing treatment options undergo rigorous FDA testing, review and safety monitoring, allowing patients like Helen access to cutting-edge medicines.

Helen’s biosimilar helped regenerate her white blood cell count, which is a sign of a strong immune system. She is now able to take her family to the beach and amusement parks again, or just go for long nightly walks.

In her own words, “After just two treatments of the biosimilar I started to feel like me again. I was able to go back to work and my most important roles as a mother and wife. Taking a biosimilar is easy, I just go to the doctor’s, get a shot and leave. After everything I have been through it’s wonderful. Because I have a non-curable form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that lays dormant but will always continue to come back, I know my medication journey will be lifelong. It is nice to know that when I need a biosimilar again, it will be there for me.”

For Helen, this is a lifelong battle, but thanks to biosimilars, she can get back to living her life to the fullest and be there for her family.

View Helen and other patient stories in the 2021 Voices of Access report.

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As we continue to advocate for accessible biosimilars, we will rely more than ever on the voices of real patients. We invite you to share your story on what biosimilar medicines mean to you and urge you to subscribe for advocacy alerts.


About the Biosimilars Council

The Biosimilars Council, a division of the Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM), works to ensure a positive environment for patient access to biosimilar medicines. The Biosimilars Council is a leading source for information about the safety and efficacy of more affordable alternatives to costly brand biologic medicines. Areas of focus include public and health expert education, strategic partnerships, government affairs, legal affairs and regulatory policy. More information is available on our about page.

About AAM

AAM is driven by the belief that access to safe, quality, effective medicine has a tremendous impact on a person’s life and the world around them. Generic and biosimilar medicines improve people’s lives, improving society and the economy in turn. AAM represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals are 90 percent of prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but only 20 percent of total drug spending.

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