Tagrix vs Tagrisso

Hi edina81,

Welcome to GRACE. Tagrisso and Tagrix are two of the brand names under which the drug Osimertinib is marketed in different parts of the world. Since this is a recently developed drug, there is no generic form available, and won’t be for quite a while, until the patent for this medication runs out.

As a result, any information you have seen about the efficacy of Tagrisso will apply to Tagrix. Tagrisso has been shown to be effective for patients who have progressed on treatment with Tarceva if they have developed a T790M mutation. If you search this site for the term “Tagrisso” you will find plenty of information regarding its use and efficacy.

JimC
Forum moderator

edina81,

There aren’t many members at this time on Grace who chat on this forum, though it would be great if there were. Forums such as Lungevity that have a large member community that would probably have members who take Osimertinib under the brand name tagrix. As Jim said both tagrix and tagrisso are the same drug, osimertinib so info on tagrix should look exactly like info on tagrisso.

I hope you do very well.
All best,
Janine

I developed resistance to Erlotinib, which served me well for three years. I now have 4 months with Osimertinib and I feel much better, the side effects of diarrhea and rash are more tolerable and showed improvement to the RX. I can not afford for TAGRISSO, but Tagrix is almost the same as. Hope more people know the cheap Tagrix.

I’m sure tagrix isn’t avialable in the US and other countries who follow the same patent laws.
I’m so glad you are getting the drugs you need and know you are thrilled to be rid of the worst of the side effects. Hope you are on this for a long long time.

All best,
Janine

Thank you so much for your kindly and detailed reply.
Edit by Janine, “I’m so sorry but I have to edit out the link but I’m sure anyone who doesn’t have access to the brand name can use what has already been given or better yet talk to your doc or one of their team to help you get the treatment you need.”

Thank you for the update edina81 and best of luck on your new treatment.

Janine

Hi edina81 – Is there any further update on progress. Thanks

Some people from inspire.com

https://www.inspire.com/groups/american-lung-association-lung-cancer-su…

are using Tagrix with success – Satsbefast, YunC (whose mum also took generic Irressa with success for 1-2 years, now she has been on Tagrix for 1-2 years) , Brtmnbs (his wife had a really great response on Tagrix, it almost cleared her lungs). I checked with those people before buying Tagrix for my mum. YunC told me that in China most people use generics.
My mum has been on Tagrix just for a couple of days. But unfortunately for her mutation (G719X) osimertinib does not seem that promising. We have to hope for some luck. If osimertinib does not work, I will have to buy generic Afatinib I guess (I will need to get some references for it first)

Hi seema2000,

Welcome to GRACE. As stated earlier in this thread, Tagrisso and Tagrix are two different brand names for the same drug, with one name used in some parts of the world, and the other used elsewhere. They will work equally well.

Many patients respond well to this drug as you can see from the post just prior to yours, and other posts on this site. Just search for “Tagrisso”, as this is the name most often used to refer to the drug here.

I hope you have an excellent, lengthy response to Tagrisso.

JimC
Forum moderator

Hello JimC

I am a bit confused….. As you mentioned in your first message: there is no generic available for Tagrisso because it’s relatively new drug on the market.

On other side: if those are same drugs made under different names ,than they both consider as original and need to be produced by the same company. Same like hypertension drug (valsartan) made as Diovan and Tareg but produced by Novartis and both considered as original with exactly same formulation.

In the case of Tagrisso and Tagrix , they are produced by different companies, so I think Tagrix could be considered as genetic drug….

Probably I am wrong…… This is very important question and we would like to understand in what extent we can trust those drugs.

Is there any chance to get professional opinion from oncologists and pharmasists who are dealing with patients daily and probably contacted producers of those drugs for some information .

Can we probably contact Astra Zeneca and confirm that production of Tagrix by the company in Bangladesh is legally patented…… what do you think ? Probably I am too naive….. Not sure how it works…..

I guess Jim’s reply might be a little misleading here. Tagrix is generic osimertinib made in Bangladesh.
I dont think there is any agreement/contract between Astra Zeneca and Beacon. Third world countries do not have to abide by international patentation laws for medications and can produce generic medications under some kind of exception (which will expire in several years) . Thats what Beacon does.
I am afraid, we can’t consider all generic anticancer medications made in “developing countries” automatically to be equal to originals and if we want to use them, we should do our research and get some references on them. I believe, Tagrix can be considered a good generic medication based on very succesfull experiences of several patients on Inspire and on good reputation of the manufacturer – Beacon is a leading company in anticancer generics production.

Hi, Daxis

Thank you very much for the explanation. Personally I am happy that we all can have an access to affordable drugs. I also read good opinions about Tagrix in inspire .

Hi daxys,

Thank you for clarifying my statement, as I didn’t address the issue of licensing. Essentially it comes down to a question of the quality of the product manufactured by Beacon-one of those questions that is tough to answer without a detailed lab analysis or head to head clinical trial comparison.

JimC
Forum moderator

Thank you, Jim, for you valuable contribution to this discussion ( as always ).

Let us hope they are making good and affordable product and it can help many people to survive.

Wish to everyone good success with their treatment and many more active years ahead !

❤️

There is also another generic osimertinib from Bangladesh named Osicent that seem to be also identical with Tagrisso and Tagrix. Some people in the "EGFR Resisters" facebook group took original and generic pills to laboratories for analysis and the result was tey were the same.
There is a guy in the same group who reports complete response on Osicent. You can go to "EGFR resisters" facebook group and search for Osicent. Osicent is half of the price of Tagrix.

Thanks daxys. Always good to know the options throughout the world.

Nice tips and explanation.

Hello,

Sorry for my English,but hopefully you understand my question.Does someone knows how other generics of Tagrisso work?F.e.Luciosim,Osimert or maybe others.Thanks.Olga

Hello,

Sorry for my English,but hopefully you understand my question.Does someone knows how other generics of Tagrisso work?F.e.Luciosim,Osimert or maybe others.Thanks.Olga

Hi Olga,  Welcome to Grace.  Please don't worry about your English.  If I'm not understanding your question just give it another try and I think we can figure it out even if it takes a few posts to get the meaning through. 

If I'm understanding your question...The generics should have the same molecular makeup as Tagrisso so it would work the same as the patented drug tagrisso without its cost.

The real issue is whether or not the generic is really an identical replica of the original.  Tagrix is one of the best known reputable generics.  In post #26 above daxys mentions, " "EGFR Resisters" facebook group took original and generic pills to laboratories for analysis and the result was they were the same." 

Perhaps check out EGFR Resisters FB group for more on the subject of what generics are legitimate generics. 

Don't hesitate to ask for help.

All the best,

Janine

my mom was on tagrisso for 6 months, she has showed good results during this period. we are having some finanal problems as the cost is too high so is tagrix works the same ? Is ot ok if we switch to tagirx now?

Read through this thread. As long as the quality can be trusted the drug is the same. Tagrix has had a good reputation but I don't know if that still applies.

Hello, My father (age 70) has recently diagnosed with metastatic adenocarcinoma.with EGFR exon 21 (Leu858Arg) and TP53 exon 5 (Asn131Tyr).He had received one round of chemotherapy with pemetrexed and carboplatin.Followed by we received that report.Doctor told me to start targetted therapy with osimertinib.
1. I can't afford Tagrisso , but can afford Tagrix. Why there is huge price difference between this two?
2. With the previous discussion, I am assuming Tagrix works equally well.just need a confirmation onto that.
3. What is the succession rate of Tagrix and life expectancy?
4. If I decide to start treatment with 1st generation TKI inhibitor (original molecule can afford), would that be equally effective?

I will defend my PhD thesis in next month and all of a sudden these happened.At this point I seek ur help regarding that.Thanks in advance

Dear all,I work in Sanofi Aventis Pharma.One of my parent is suffering from NSS lung cancer since 2020.We have started with Tagrisso 80 mg from Astra zenena from sweden.And are importing it.Osimertinib is the patented molecule from Astra zeneca but beacon pharma from Bangladesh has challenged the patent under ANDA at United States Food and Drug Administer which is the most stringent authority on giving appoval to any drug all over the world.Beacon pharma from bangladesh has challanged Astra zeneca's patent and got approval to manufacture worlds first ANDA or generic Osimertinib.The plant of beacon pharma is approved by USFDA and successful inspection beacon pharma got approval to manufacture and market osimertinib as Tagrix. I have also confirmed with my sanofi colleague in Bangladesh.He also confirmed the news.As Tagrix is generic but have same efficiency as that of tagrisso. Its cheaper and i fully recommend to go for Tagrix instead of tagrisso whoever dont have social benefits or medical expenses covered undertheir country's medical programm.Please buy Tagrix instead of tagrisso who cant afford tagrisso.The Price of Tagrisso 80 mg in India is INR.157000 per 10 tablets while Tagrix 30 tablets are available at INR.30000 per 30 tableta means need to spend only INR 10000 for 10 tablets.Its too cost effective with same results.I am aslo swithing to Tagrix 80 mg from beacon pharma.I am Pharmacist and i say with caution and authority.:Dipak Chavan (phone omitted) India.

Hi all! I'm Maria, the Programs and Partnerships Director for GRACE. After doing some research, I can't verify Dipak's claims that Tagrix is FDA approved for use in the United States. I checked both at the "Orange Book" site (where the FDA lists approved drugs) and the Drugs@FDA site. Neither of them list anything other than Tagrisso as an FDA approved medication. Osimertinib is currently only available via AstraZeneca.

The medication can be expensive, but there are options:

1. The makers of Tagrisso offer a program for certain individuals that may reduce their cost to $0. You can look at their site to see if you can receive the benefit.

2. Ask your oncologist about programs to help lower the cost. Many hospitals and networks offer programs to help with the cost of medications.

3. Sign up for updates on CostPlusDrugs. Currently, they don't offer osimertinib/Tagrisso but their drug list is always expanding. This is a legitimate, safe pharmacy option that provides medication at a greatly discounted rate by cutting out the "middle men".

Please exercise caution when looking at outside sources for medication and treatment options. Always discuss medication questions with your oncologist.