Roche cancer immunotherapy

The European Commission (EC) has approved the EU's first PD-(L)1 cancer immunotherapy for subcutaneous injection. Roche’s Tecentriq® (atezolizumab) was first approved in Great Britain in August 2023.

Compared with standard intravenous (IV) delivery, Roche stated that its monoclonal antibody biologic shortens treatment time by approximately 80 percent. This is according to findings from a Phase III study of atezolizumab comparing subcutaneous versus intravenous administration. These data were presented at European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) in October 2023.

Having previously been administered via IV infusion, which takes approximately 30-60 minutes, the new subcutaneous injection means administration takes approximately seven minutes, with the average injection only taking between four and eight minutes, based on data presented at ESMO 2023.

Roche’s Tecentriq SC (atezolizumab)

Tecentriq binds to the programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) protein and blocks its interactions with both PD-1 and B7.1 receptors. Through its inhibition of PD-L1, Tecentriq may facilitate T-cell activation, Roche noted.

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