Roche Introduces Tecentriq SC in India: A Novel Treatment Option for Lung Cancer Patients

Roche Launches Faster Lung Cancer Treatment in India

Swiss pharmaceutical major Roche on Thursday launched a faster, under-the-skin alternative to conventional lung cancer immunotherapy in India, aiming to significantly reduce treatment time and shift care away from overburdened hospital wards.

The company launched Tecentriq SC, a subcutaneous formulation of its atezolizumab injection, in India. Unlike standard intravenous infusions that can take several hours, the new injection is administered under the skin in approximately seven minutes, reducing overall administration time by 80 minutes when preparation and waiting for an infusion chair are factored in.

Roche India Director, Medical and Regulatory Affairs, Sivabalan Sivanesan, explained that the time to administer the new injection is reduced due to the elimination of preparation and waiting time for an infusion chair. The eventual administration of the injection takes between four to eight minutes, with a median of about seven minutes.

Read also: Wockhardt Secures Second US Approval for New Drug, Eyes Commercial Viability

According to the company, the drug targets a significant patient population. Around 80,000 lung cancer patients are diagnosed in India each year, the majority at advanced stages of the disease.

Key Features of Tecentriq SC

Tecentriq SC is an immunotherapy that works by being injected directly under the skin rather than delivered through a vein. This eliminates the need for IV line preparation and dedicated infusion chairs, allowing the entire process to be completed far more quickly than its intravenous counterpart.

Read also: US FDA Approves Wockhardt's Zaynich for Treatment of Complicated Urinary Tract Infections in Adults

Roche says the formulation has the potential to treat up to five patients in the time it would take to administer one intravenous infusion. This has significant implications for how oncology resources are used, freeing up hospital beds, healthcare staff time, and specialist oncology facilities at tertiary care centers.

Treatment Cost and Accessibility

The company aims to shift where treatment actually happens, currently most advanced lung cancer care is delivered at large tertiary hospitals. Roche argues that Tecentriq SC's speed and simplicity could allow patients to receive the same treatment at daycare centers rather than specialist wards, reducing the burden on both patients and the healthcare system.

Sivabalan Sivanesan stated that with Tecentriq SC, lung cancer patients will be able to go from tertiary centers to daycare centers, and it even opens the door for decentralizing treatment, allowing patients to receive the same treatment with a much better experience.

The company says the drug maintains the same established efficacy and safety profile as the original intravenous Tecentriq formulation, meaning the clinical outcomes remain consistent while the patient experience improves considerably.

Tecentriq SC is priced at about Rs 3.7 lakh per sub-cutting machine and is already available in 85 countries, with over 10,000 patients having benefitted from it globally. In India, around 80,000 lung cancer patients are diagnosed annually, most of them with advanced stages, and Roche's unique formulation is expected to have a significant impact in terms of reaching more patients.