In the United Kingdom, patients will be able to receive an injection in a few minutes of a monoclonal antibody to treat various tumors.
- British people with a tumor will have the opportunity to benefit from a subcutaneous injection of atezolizumab or Tecentriq in seven minutes.
- This medication, which works by helping the immune system find and kill cancer cells, treats lung, breast, liver and bladder cancers.
- In adults with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer, it reduces the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 34%, after surgery and chemotherapy.
After gaining approval from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the National Health Service (NHS) will be the first health system to offer an injection of atezolizumab or Tecentriq to hundreds of patients , according to the newspaper The Guardian. The drug, given to around 3,600 people in England, treats different types of cancer, including lung, breast, liver and bladder cancer.
Cancers: a monoclonal antibody administered in seven minutes instead of one hour
Tecentriq blocks a protein that stops the immune system from attacking cancer cells, making them more visible to the immune system. Studies have shown that in adults with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer, atezolizumab can reduce the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 34%, after surgery and chemotherapy.
Until now, this treatment was administered intravenously, which usually takes 30 minutes to an hour. Thanks to the subcutaneous injection of the monoclonal antibody, it will be administered in just seven minutes. Thus, delays will be reduced by three quarters. However, patients who receive atezolizumab along with chemotherapy may still receive the drug intravenously.
“Spend less time in hospital” and free up “precious time in chemotherapy units”
“The arrival of this treatment as a world first will allow hundreds of patients to spend less time in hospital and will free up precious time in the health system’s chemotherapy units. (…) Maintaining the best quality of possible life for cancer patients is vital, and the introduction of faster injections will make a significant difference,” Professor Peter Johnson, NHS England national director for cancer, told the British newspaper. According to him, this faster processing does not entail any additional costs due to the existing agreement negotiated with the manufacturer, the Swiss laboratory Roche.
