Roche announces positive Actemra trial results

Roche has unveiled the positive results of a trial into its rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment Actemra (tocilizumab, or RoActemra in the EU).

The study discovered that patients treated with Actemra plus methotrexate (MTX) suffered 81 per cent less damage to their joints compared to those treated with the standard therapy MTX alone.

For 50 per cent of RA patients who had no previous biologic therapy, 96 weeks of treatment with Actemra resulted in one swollen joint or less.

Furthermore, 35 per cent of those treated only with Actemra had one or less tender joints after the same timeframe.

Professor Josef Smolen from the University of Vienna stated: "This impressive effect on joints, coupled with the previously shown ability of tocilizumab to provide relief from the signs and symptoms of RA, gives it an important role within clinical practice."

In other Roche news, a study of Tamiflu sponsored by the firm showed last month that 45 out of 85 people who received at least one dose of the drug survived after contracting the H1N1 influenza virus.