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{\pard\sa900\fs50\f0\i Media Release\par}
{\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 Basel, 28 July 2006\line \line {\b In 
the interests of patients, Roche will consider all options following CHMP opinion on Tarceva in pancreatic 
cancer} \line \line \line Roche announced today that its cancer medicine 
Tarceva (erlotinib) has received a negative opinion from the European Committee for Medicinal Products 
for Human Use (CHMP) for use in combination with gemcitabine chemotherapy for the first line treatment 
of advanced pancreatic cancer, a cancer with an extremely high fatality rate.{\super 1}  
Roche is confident in the trial data which has shown that the Tarceva combination treatment significantly 
increases patient survival. In the interest of the patients, Roche will now consider all options following 
this decision, including requesting a re-examination of this decision. \line \line Tarceva 
has already been approved by the American Food and Drug Administration in November 2005 for the first-line 
treatment of patients with locally advanced, unresectable or metastatic pancreatic cancer in combination 
with gemcitabine chemotherapy. Both the US and the EU application are based on data from the Phase III 
study (PA3){\super 2}  which showed that treatment with Tarceva plus gemcitabine results 
in significantly longer survival compared to gemcitabine alone (22%). In addition, 24% of patients receiving 
Tarceva plus gemcitabine were alive after one year, compared to 19% on gemcitabine alone. \line  
\line \u8220?Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive forms of cancer and it kills more people 
within the first year of diagnosis than any other cancer,\u8221? said Eduard Holdener, Head of Global Drug 
Development. \u8220?Given such a poor outlook, even modest improvements in survival are valuable to advanced 
stage patients.\u8221?\line \line Despite significant advances in the treatment of many 
other tumours, the five year survival rate for men and women diagnosed with pancreatic cancer has not 
changed in decades.{\super 1}  Treatment options for patients are extremely limited 
and Tarceva is the first treatment for many years to have shown a significant survival benefit in patients 
with pancreatic cancer.\line \line Roche and its partners are committed to realising 
the potential of Tarceva in treating pancreatic cancer through its extensive clinical trial programme, 
including a Roche-sponsored randomised, double blind, placebo controlled study of gemcitabine and Tarceva+/- 
Avastin in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer (AVITA or BO17706). Tarceva is approved and marketed 
in the US and across the European Union for patients with locally advanced or metastatic non small cell 
lung cancer (NSCLC) after failure of at least one prior chemotherapy regimen. \line \line A 
variation application was submitted to the European Health Authorities in October 2005 for Tarceva plus 
gemcitabine chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. In 
April 2006, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. filed a New Drug Application (NDA) with the Japanese Ministry 
of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) for Tarceva in patients with advanced or recurrent NSCLC.\line \line {\b About 
the PA3 study} {\super 2} \line The pivotal Phase III randomised study 
(PA3)2 of 569 patients was conducted by the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group 
based at Queen\u8217?s University. The double blind study evaluated Tarceva\u8217?s efficacy in patients with locally 
advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer.\line \line The results of PA3{\super 2}  
demonstrated the following:\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Treatment with Tarceva 
plus gemcitabine in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer resulted in significantly longer survival 
compared to gemcitabine alone (22%)\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - 24% of patients receiving Tarceva 
plus gemcitabine were alive after one year, compared to 19% on gemcitabine alone\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Patients 
receiving Tarceva plus gemcitabine experienced significantly longer progression-free survival of 30%\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Tarceva 
plus gemcitabine was well tolerated by patients with no increase in haematological toxicity; as expected 
rash and diarrhoea were the principal Tarceva-related side effects seen in the study and were generally 
characterised as mild-to-moderate\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Tarceva plus gemcitabine reported 
a safety profile generally consistent with that seen in other studies both monotherapy and combination 
settings\par}\line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 {\b About pancreatic cancer} \line Pancreatic 
cancer is the tenth most frequently occurring cancer in Europe.{\super 3}  The main 
risk factors for pancreatic cancer include advanced age, cigarette smoking, a high-fat diet, diabetes 
mellitus, chronic inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis), especially hereditary pancreatitis, and 
a family history of pancreatic cancer.{\super 4}  \u160?The symptoms vary depending 
upon where the tumour is in the pancreas. The major symptoms are weight loss, abdominal pain and jaundice. 
1 The disease is rapidly fatal and attempts to improve survival over the past 10 years have been unsuccessful.\line \line {\b About 
Tarceva} \line Tarceva (erlotinib) is an investigational small molecule that targets the 
human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER1) pathway. HER1, also known as EGFR, is a key component 
of this signalling pathway, which plays a role in the formation and growth of numerous cancers. Tarceva 
blocks tumour cell growth by inhibiting the tyrosine kinase activity of the HER1 signalling pathway 
inside the cell. \line \line Taken as an oral, once-daily therapy, Tarceva is the 
only EGFR-inhibitor to have demonstrated a survival benefit in lung cancer \u8211? a striking 42.5%. Currently 
most lung cancer patients are treated with chemotherapy which can be very debilitating due to its toxic 
nature. Tarceva works differently to chemotherapy by specifically targeting tumour cells, and avoids 
the typical side-effects of chemotherapy.\line \line Tarceva is approved in the 
US and across the EU for patients with locally advanced or metastatic non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) 
after failure of at least one prior chemotherapy regimen.\line \line Tarceva has 
been approved by the FDA since November 2, 2005 for treatment of locally advanced, unresectable or metastatic 
pancreatic cancer in combination with gemcitabine chemotherapy.\line \line Tarceva 
is currently being evaluated in an extensive clinical development programme by a global alliance among 
OSI Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, and Roche, focussing on earlier stages of NSCLC. \u160?Additionally, 
Tarceva is being studied in combination with Avastin in NSCLC. Trials are also being conducted with 
Tarceva in other solid tumours, such as ovarian, bronchioloalveolar (BAC), colorectal, pancreatic, head 
and neck and glioma (brain).\line \line {\b About Roche} \line Headquartered 
in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world\u8217?s leading research-focused healthcare groups in the 
fields of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. As a supplier of innovative products and services for the 
early detection, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, the Group contributes on a broad range 
of fronts to improving people\u8217?s health and quality of life. Roche is a world leader in diagnostics, 
the leading supplier of medicines for cancer and transplantation and a market leader in virology. In 
2005 sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totalled 27.3 billion Swiss francs, and the Diagnostics Division 
posted sales of 8.2 billion Swiss francs. Roche employs roughly 70,000 people in 150 countries and has 
R&D agreements and strategic alliances with numerous partners, including majority ownership interests 
in Genentech and Chugai. Additional information about the Roche Group is available on the Internet (www.roche.com (http://www.roche.com)).\line \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 All 
trademarks used or mentioned in this release are protected by law.\par}\line \line For 
further information about:\line - Cancer (http://www.health-kiosk.ch/start_krebs)\line - Roche 
in Oncology (http://www.roche.com/mboncology-e.pdf)\line - Genentech\line  (http://www.gene.com)- OSI 
Pharmaceuticals (http://www.osip.com)\line \line \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 References:\line 1. 
Steward, B W and Kleihues, P. 2003. World Cancer Report. World Health Organisation and the International 
Agency for Research on Cancer, IARC Press/Lyon, p248\line 2. Moore MJ, Goldstein D, Hamm J, 
et al. Erlotinib plus gemcitabine compared to gemcitabine alone in patients with advanced pancreatic 
cancer. A Phase III trial of the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group [NCIC-CTG]. 
(Abstract #1, ASCO 2005) \line 3. De Braud F, Cascinu S, Gatta G. 2004, May. Cancer of Pancreas. 
Critical reviews in oncology/hematology, 50(2):147-55\line 4. Truninger K (ed). 2002, Aug. 
Risk groups for pancreatic and bile duct carcinomas. Schweizerische Rundschau fur Medizin Praxis, 17;89 
(33):1299-304\par}\par}
{\pard \par}
{\pard\sb180\f1\fs22 {\b F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd}\line 4070 Basel\line Switzerland \par}
{\pard\sb180\f1\fs22 Corporate Communications\line Roche Group Media Relations \par}
{\pard\sb180\f1\fs22 Tel. +41 61 688 88 88\line Fax +41 61 688 27 75\line www.roche.com \par}
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