This drug which is a monoclonal antibody enables one’s immune system to trace and destroy the cancerous cells. The drug is made by Genentech, a Roche (ROG.S) company.
In a first, England is going to roll out the world’s first seven-minute cancer treatment injection. Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) will become the world’s first health body to provide this medical breakthrough that can reduce the time of treatment by up to three-quarters.
On Tuesday, NHS England stated that hundreds of patients who were treated with the immunotherapy, are set to receive “under the skin” injections of atezolizumab, which will eventually lead to more time for cancer teams. The jab has been approved by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
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Currently, patients get the life-extending immunotherapy atezolizumab (Tencentriq) in hospitals directly into their veins through drug transfusion. Usually, this process takes around 30 minutes to administer intravenous atezolizumab. However, in some patients, it can take up to an hour. Now, the drug will be given under the skin.
What is atezolizumab?
Atezolizumab is a type of targeted therapy drug called an immune checkpoint inhibitor. This drug is used alone or with other chemotherapy medications to treat certain types of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in adults, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Melanoma, Urothelial Carcinoma, Triple-Negative Breast Cancer etc.
This drug which is a monoclonal antibody enables one’s immune system to trace and destroy the cancerous cells. The drug is made by Genentech, a Roche (ROG.S) company.
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Reportedly, the majority of the approximately 3,600 patients starting treatment of atezolizumab in the country every year will switch to the time-saving injection. The NHS also stated that the patients who will be receiving intravenous chemotherapy along with atezolizumab in combination may remain on the transfusion.
What will be the impact of “under the skin” injections of atezolizumab?
Dr Alexander Martin, a consultant oncologist at West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust said as quoted by the news agency Reuters, this approval will not only allow them to deliver convenient and faster care for the patients but will enable the teams to treat more patients throughout the day.
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Reportedly, the change is set to take place within weeks, as eligible patients receiving atezolizumab treatment will benefit from the quicker and more comfortable under-the-skin (subcutaneous) injection method.
According to a report by Benzinga, the treatment will come at no additional cost to the NHS due to an existing commercial agreement between NHS England and pharmaceutical manufacturer Roche.
In 2021, the country witnessed the successful launch of another cancer treatment, Phesgo. Reportedly, this therapy streamlined breast cancer treatment times to minutes, achieving rapid patient uptake in the NHS.
