Patient state of knowledge on biosimilars – do physicians need to improve education skills?

Availability of biosimilar medicines is rapidly increasing, potentially leading to a wider prescription and a support for healthcare system costs. Despite efforts of patient and physician educational initiatives there still remains a reluctance in prescribing or administering this type of products. A multi-centric survey was conducted on 336 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), spondyloarthritis (SpA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) or lupus (SLE) on biologic treatment. Half of the patients stated never hearing of biosimilars and one third feared adverse events (infections, cancer). Another 20% felt insecure on drug tolerability or efficacy. However, the majority declared relying on their rheumatologist if prescribing a biosimilar. Lack of patient information should be accurately addressed by health organizations so that the choice of treatment is done knowingly.