Roche demonstrates cutting-edge innovation for health of future

Global biotech giant Roche is presenting a full portfolio of launched and market-ready products at the 5th China International Import Expo, showcasing its long-term commitment to China and new initiatives to drive healthcare innovation for the future.

Roche was the first Fortune Global 500 company to commit to participating in the CIIE to China's Ministry of Commerce, and has been at the expo for five consecutive years. This year, with one of the largest booths in the Medical Equipment & Healthcare Products exhibition hall, Roche Pharma China and Dia China will again join hands to showcase the group's cutting-edge solutions and innovative products to protect human health.

"The CIIE is an important window for China to actively open its market to the world, supporting massive cooperation opportunities and fostering global economic recovery. It's a great honor for Roche to attend the CIIE for five consecutive years," said Dr Christoph Franz, chairman of the board of directors for Roche Group.

"In the past four years, Roche has benefited from the strong spillover effect of the CIIE. We've presented more than 30 innovative drugs and indications at the expo. Nearly half of them have been launched in China to benefit thousands of Chinese patients. We've also leveraged the CIIE as an open platform to forge many partnerships with our healthcare eco-system partners.

"We are fully confident in the Chinese market and have strong commitment. In the past five years, Roche has invested nearly 5.4 billion yuan (US$742 million) in China and our commitment will remain in the future."

Bringing global innovative products, solutions to benefit more Chinese patients

At the 5th CIIE, Roche will create an "Innovation Cube" at its 1,000-square-meter booth under the theme of "Collaborative innovation leading the future of healthcare." The numerous cubes symbolize Roche's continuous pursuit of innovation with pharma and diagnostics under one roof with a history of over 125 years, while working with ecosystem partners to explore unlimited possibilities and safeguard the health of people.

This year, Roche will showcase a full portfolio of launched and market-ready products, including nearly 10 global innovative products that will debut in China soon, covering hematology, breast cancer, ophthalmology, neuroscience, etc.

As a leader in hematology, Roche has a rich pipeline, and has launched several blockbuster products in China, transforming the standard-of-care in this field. The company will demonstrate a number of important market-ready products at the CIIE.

Among them, Polivy is a first-in-class ADC (antibody-drug conjugate) targeting CD79b with superior efficacy over first-line gold-standard treatment in the past 20 years as it offers a breakthrough option for patients with DLBCL (diffuse large B-cell lymphoma). Another exhibit is Crovalimab for the treatment of PNH (paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria), and it is expected to be the first innovative drug to have its first global commercial launch in China ahead of Europe and the United States. It will fill the gap in the treatment of PNH patients in China.

Roche will also showcase Phesgo, the world's first anti-HER2 dual-target subcutaneous therapy for the treatment of breast cancer, which will be launched in China soon. It can be administered by a single 5-8 minute subcutaneous injection, thus significantly shortening the dosing time and providing patients with a new, faster and less invasive treatment option.

Also, Roche has been focused on exploring groundbreaking therapies in ophthalmology. At this year's CIIE, Roche will present Faricimab, the world's first bispecific antibody for the eyes, which has been approved for commercial launch in Europe and the US. It is known as the first treatment option with a novel mechanism of action in the field of ophthalmology in more than a decade.

In addition to global innovative products and cutting-edge technologies, Roche will also hold many launch events on major achievements in key disease areas, including hematology, breast cancer, lung cancer, neuroscience and broad-spectrum oncology. The company will also showcase innovative projects and solutions, including Roche Accelerator, a major strategic investment by Roche Group. The members of the Accelerator will also be presented at the CIIE, demonstrating joint efforts to drive local healthcare innovation to benefit patients globally.

Roche Accelerator is Roche Group's first inhouse accelerator, which aims to empower startups in China and transform research achievements into business.

Located in the heart of Zhangjiang in Shanghai's Pudong New Area, the Roche Accelerator building, which covers an area of over 5,000 square meters, will be inaugurated soon. It will be home to state-of-the-art laboratories, offices, and collaboration spaces for Accelerator members.

Eleven local startups stood out from the 220-odd applicants to become Accelerator members and have already formed eight partnerships with the China Innovation Center of Roche on early research and development to jointly explore new science priorities and technology platforms.

"The CIIE has become an excellent platform and gathering place for global innovative products and cutting-edge technologies, and has also built an excellent bridge of exchange and communication between governments and enterprises, and between partners," said Vivian Bian, CEO of Roche Pharma China.

"The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China closed recently. We believe the opening of the 5th CIIE at this point fully demonstrates what General Secretary Xi Jinping said during the congress, 'promote high-quality economic development and make new strides in reform and opening up.'"

In the past three years, Roche Pharma has invested more than 1.4 billion yuan to fulfill its commitment of 'in China, for China', Bian noted.

"In the future, we will continue to increase investment in China. On the one hand, we will expedite our innovation pace, increasingly bringing more of our innovative drugs into China earlier and faster. On the other, we will continue our 'in China, for China' and 'in China, for Global' strategy, actively participating in the 'Healthy China 2030' initiative. We would like to be one of the important players, participants and contributors of Chinese healthcare ecosystem, exploring new collaboration patterns with more partners, and promoting the research and development capabilities of Chinese innovation."

Roche Group has a close bond of more than 90 years with China. China is always an important part of Roche's global strategy. In recent years, China's continuous advancement of high-level opening-up and improvement of the business environment has injected huge impetus to MNCs operating in China, including Roche.

Roche pays close attention and attaches great importance to the Chinese market, and is highly confident about China's future. Among multinational pharma companies, Roche has taken the lead in building and upgrading a complete pharma value chain covering early research, late-phase product development, manufacturing and commercialization. In the future, Roche will continue to increase investment in China, work with the government, medical institutions and NGOs to explore innovative modes of cooperation in a bid to create a healthy future for people around the world.