BRIEF—Another Tecentriq approval in Japan

Japanese drugmaker Chugai has won a new approval for Roche's Tecentriq (atezolizumab), to treat extensive-phase small cell lung cancer.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) granted the approval for the humanized anti-PD-L1 monoclonal antibody based on the results from the Phase I/III IMpower133 study.

The drug was first approved in Japan in January 2018 for previously treated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and picked up an additional approval in December 2018 for untreated resectable advanced/recurrent NSCLC.