Compromised vials of Roche's MabThera found in Germany

15 September 2014

Swiss drug major Roche (ROG: SIX) has said that compromised vials of its arthritis and cancer drug MabThera (rituximab) had been found in Germany. This is the second time that Roche has suffered falsification of its medicines in recent months, as counterfeit vials of breast cancer drug Herceptin (trastuzumab) were found in three countries in Europe earlier this year.

Roche said it was working with national health authorities and law enforcement to help mitigate the risk to patients after a drug distributor in Germany found three vials of MabThera that carried evidence of tampering. One such marker was a reduced amount of the drug’s key active ingredient, while others were missing caps and information leaflets, or were printed with batch numbers which did not match the products inside.

MabThera is used to treat types of leukemia and lymphatic cancers, as well as rheumatoid arthritis. It is a high-cost drug, and in the UK a 50ml vial costs around $1,416.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free. A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Try before you buy

Free

7 day trial access

Take a Free Trial

All the news that moves the needle in pharma and biotech
Exclusive features, podcasts, interviews, data analyses and commentary from our global network of life sciences reporters.
Receive The Pharma Letter daily news bulletin, free forever.

Become a subscriber

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now

Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription

The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK