FDA approves 'Inflectra', a novel drug saving the US billions of dollars.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just approved a version of Remicade, a drug used to treat autoimmune diseases like Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis.

The drug, developed by Celltrion and which will be co-marketed by Pfizer, goes by the name "Inflectra." It's a form of infliximab, but will carry the suffix "-dyyb" to differentiate itself. This is the second "biosimilar" to be approved by the FDA.

The drug is called a biosimilar because it is like a generic version of a biologic medication, a medicine produced by living cells.

But it's a bit more complicated than that. Unlike generics for chemical-based drugs — think antibiotics or birth-control pills — that can be interchangeable with branded versions, the copycats of biologic medications, produced using living cells, have a few more caveats. That's because the drugs might have different reactions in your body.

Read more: FDA approves 'Inflectra', a novel drug saving the US billions of dollars.

Source: Wikimedia Commons