A government panel Wednesday took a major step toward approving a copycat version of a blockbuster cancer drug, paving the way for a new class of cheaper medicines that could save consumers billions of dollars.

An expert Food and Drug Administration panel unanimously recommended that the government approve the drug known as EP2006, a lower-cost imitator of a popular medicine called Neupogen, used to help cancer patients fight off infection while undergoing chemotherapy. The FDA usually accepts recommendations from advisory panels but is not required to.

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