Monotherapy Treatment for a Type of Metastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Approved

Basel-based Roche announced on May 5, 2021, that the European Commission has approved Tecentriq® (atezolizumab) as a first-line treatment for adults with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors have high PD-L1 expression, with no epidermal growth factor receptor or anaplastic lymphoma kinase genomic tumor aberrations.

“We are delighted to bring Tecentriq to people in the EU with this specific type of lung cancer,” commented Levi Garraway, M.D., Ph.D., Roche’s Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Product Development, in a press statement.

“Tecentriq monotherapy has been shown to improve overall survival in people with high PD-L1 expression, when compared to chemotherapy, and therefore represents a new treatment option for people living with this difficult-to-treat disease.”

Tecentriq is now the first and only single-agent cancer immunotherapy with three dosing options, allowing administration every two, three, or four weeks, giving physicians and patients greater flexibility on how they manage their treatment.

Roche has an extensive development program for Tecentriq, including multiple ongoing and planned Phase III studies across different settings in lung, genitourinary, skin, breast, gastrointestinal, gynecological, and head and neck cancers.

This includes studies evaluating Tecentriq both alone and in combination with other medicines and studies in metastatic, adjuvant, and neoadjuvant settings across various tumor types.

Founded in 1896, Roche is the world’s largest biotech company, with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, immunology, infectious diseases, ophthalmology, and diseases of the central nervous system. Roche is also the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics and tissue-based cancer diagnostics and a frontrunner in diabetes management.