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Driving biosimilar adoption in APAC

Overcoming barriers through education and engagement

The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region is quickly becoming a key player in the global biosimilars market. Countries such as South Korea, Japan, India and Australia have rapidly growing biotech industries, supported by government initiatives to actively encourage the use of biosimilars. Further, the region’s rising incidence of chronic disease is driving demand for more cost-effective treatment options. Biosimilars, with their potential to deliver high-quality treatment at lower costs, are well-positioned to meet this need – making APAC a particular promising landscape for growth and innovation in this sector.

Biosimilar sponsors that wish to find success in the APAC region will need to consider how best to encourage adoption of their products. A key part of this endeavour is establishing patient and provider awareness and confidence in biosimilars. Here, we explore barriers to biosimilar uptake in APAC regions, as well as approaches for provider and patient outreach and education to encourage biosimilar adoption. 

Barriers for biosimilars

Beyond access limitations such as pricing, two key barriers continue to hinder biosimilars uptake among patients and providers. 

The first is general awareness and understanding of biosimilars as a treatment option. As a relatively recent category of therapeutics, biosimilars are still unfamiliar to many. In several APAC countries, regulatory authority approval for biosimilars has only been granted within the past fifteen years. In some markets, adoption is even more recent - for example China approved its first biosimilar in 2019. 

Patient awareness of biosimilars remains low across many countries in the APAC region. In South Korea, one survey revealed that 55% of patients with medical conditions commonly treated with biologics were unfamiliar with the definition of biosimilars and 61% did not understand their distinction from small-molecule generics.1 This knowledge gap is not unique to South Korea and may be even more pronounced across other APAC countries. For example in a separate survey of patients in India, Taiwan and Thailand, only 21% reported a strong knowledge of biosimilars.2 

Once patients and providers are familiar with what biosimilars are, the second obstacle is building their confidence in safety and efficacy of biosimilar compounds. Misconceptions persist that an expedited clinical trial, shorter approval process and/or a lower drug price implies that biosimilars could be less safe or effective than their reference biologics. These doubts can contribute to hesitation in both prescribing and using biosimilars, underscoring the importance of addressing misconceptions through education and transparent communication.

Filling knowledge gaps among physicians

While healthcare providers across the APAC region are usually more familiar with biosimilars than patients, knowledge gaps remain. In a survey of six Asian countries, 68% of physicians reported having a strong knowledge of biosimilars, while 32% indicated only moderate or limited understanding.2 These findings suggest that biosimilar sponsors should shift their focus from raising basic provider awareness to ensuring deeper understanding to increase and build clinical confidence of biosimilars treatment options. It may be helpful for sponsors to identify the most common questions and concerns among providers and proactively address them. As one example, physicians in Japan reported that they felt it necessary to request information comparing the quality, safety, efficacy and cost burden between a biosimilar and its reference product prior to prescribing a biosimilar.3

Anticipating such requests and compiling relevant information in an easily accessed databases or central information hubs could streamline decision-making and increase physician comfort in prescribing a biosimilar. Other methods of provider education may include targeted training sessions, continuing medical education programs, or specialty-specific workshops.

Reaching patients where they are

Improving provider confidence is likely to play a significantly increased role in patient uptake as they frequently rely on providers for guidance on treatment options. In South Korea, for example, 95% of patients receiving only biosimilars cited their doctors’ recommendations as the primary reason for their choice. Similarly, 91.7% of patients treated exclusively with originator biologics also based their decision on their physician’s advice.1

To reach patients in the APAC region, public education initiatives have shown some promise. One Australian program, Biosimilars Awareness Week, focused on driving online engagement with informative social media messaging and educational resources surrounding biosimilars.4 Such initiatives may require coordinating with local organisations invested in public health and biosimilar advancement, such as Australia’s Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association.

In the case of recruiting patients for international biosimilar clinical trials, providing educational materials in local languages can be beneficial to removing barriers. These materials can include a patient guide to biosimilars, study posters, study brochures and doctor-to-patient letters, in addition to newsletters.

Realising biosimilar potential

While biosimilars hold a great deal of promise for increasing access to critical treatments in APAC countries, they cannot be successful while patients and providers remain unconvinced of their quality and benefits. Finding ways to reach these audiences and bolster their confidence in biosimilars will be vital to fully realising the potential of biosimilars around the world.

Sources:

1 Choi, Eunjung, et al. “Unaware and Unpowered: Evaluating Patient Perceptions and Preferences of Biosimilars in South Korea.” Frontiers in Pharmacology, vol. 16, 2025, p. 1551451, https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2025.1551451.

2 Thongpooswan, Supat, et al. “Physicians’ and Patients’ Perception of Biosimilars and Factors Affecting Biosimilar Prescribing in Selected Asian Countries: A Survey Study.” Expert Opinion on Biological Therapy, vol. 24, no. 10, Oct. 2024, pp. 1171–82, https://doi.org/10.1080/14712598.2024.2400523.

3 Biosimilar Adoption and Prescribing in Japan: A Physician Opinion Survey. https://gabionline.net/biosimilars/research/biosimilar-adoption-and-prescribing-in-japan-a-physician-opinion-survey. Accessed 10 July 2025.

4 “Biosimilar Awareness Week Proves Successful for Australia.” Center for Biosimilars, 14 July 2020, https://www.centerforbiosimilars.com/view/biosimilar-awareness-week-proves-successful-for-australia.

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