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As AbbVie’s Humira (adalimumab) tops the biggest-selling drug list again in 2018, it is hard to see where any challenger might come from to snatch the autoimmune disorder therapy’s crown ahead of its patent expiry in 2023. With the exception of Boehringer Ingelheim, AbbVie’s legal team has successfully settled with companies wanting to launch biosimilar versions of this monoclonal antibody (mAb) targeting tumour necrosis factor (TNF) in the US, while price increases in the region have helped pushed Humira sales up to just under US$20 billion in 2018 (Fig. 1a). AbbVie has reportedly also found a way to compete with the biosimilars that have launched in Europe, winning its first national tender by offering Humira at an 80% discount to its list price.