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{\pard\sa900\fs50\f0\i Media Release\par}
{\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 Basel, 26 February 2007\line \line {\b Positive 
recommendation 
for Avastin use in advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer in Japan} \line Priority review 
process 
aims to make Avastin available to patients as soon as possible\line \line Roche 
today announced that Chugai has received a positive recommendation for the use of Avastin (bevacizumab) 
in patients with advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer. This recommendation was granted by a consultative 
expert panel for the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW). The approval is expected 
by mid-year.\line  \line The Investigational Committee for Usage of Unapproved Drugs 
(a body established by the MHLW) recommended that an early filing be made for Avastin. Accordingly, 
Chugai submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) in April 2006. This process enables faster submission 
of certain medicines with proven efficacy which are approved in the US and/or Europe but are not yet 
available in Japan. \line \line "Today\u8217?s decision represents a further significant 
milestone for oncologists and patients in Japan. The Japanese authorities have recognized that Avastin 
is a breakthrough drug which addresses an unmet medical need for patients suffering with advanced colorectal 
cancer" said Williams M. Burns, CEO Division Roche Pharmaceuticals "We are looking forward 
to making 
this groundbreaking treatment available to colorectal cancer patients in Japan as quickly as possible."\line \line The 
Avastin filing was based on local Phase I data, along with supporting 
US and European Phase II and pivotal Phase III data {\super 1,2,3}  \line \line In 
Japan, the 
incidence of colorectal cancer has increased significantly in the last 50 years and research interest 
in this cancer has grown rapidly among Japanese clinicians and pathologists {\super 4} . 
In 2005, colorectal cancer 
was one of the most commonly reported cancer with an estimated incidence of 115,000 people in Japan 
{\super 5} . 
\line \line Avastin is the first and only anti-angiogenic agent which has been shown 
to consistently deliver improved overall and/or progression-free survival benefit for colorectal, lung, 
breast and renal cell cancer patients.\line \line In Europe, Avastin was approved 
in January 2005 and in the US in February 2004 for first-line treatment of patients with metastatic 
colorectal cancer. It received another approval in the US in June 2006 as a second-line treatment for 
patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. The first filing for Avastin in Japan occurred in April 
2006 for the treatment of advanced or recurrent colorectal cancer. Most recently following priority 
review, the world\u8217?s first angiogenesis inhibitor was approved by the FDA in October 2006 for the treatment 
of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); a filing for the same indication was submitted to EU authorities 
in August 2006. \line \line {\b Data used for filing} \line The 
local Phase 
I study was conducted in 18 patients with metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum to investigate 
the pharmacokinetics and safety of Avastin in Japanese patients when used in combination with 5-fluorouracil/folinic 
acid.\line \line A Phase II study (AVF2192) demonstrated that Avastin, when added 
to a combination of 5-fluorouracil/folinic acid, prolonged the time until disease progression or death 
by an extra four months compared to chemotherapy alone (a 67% increase in progression-free survival).\line \line In 
the Phase III pivotal trial (AVF2107), patients with previously untreated metastatic carcinoma of the 
colon or rectum (mCRC) who received Avastin in combination with intravenous 5-fluorouracil/folinic acid/irinotecan 
lived significantly longer than patients receiving the same chemotherapy without Avastin- on average 
by nearly five months (20.3 months versus 15.6 months). Also, the addition of Avastin increased the 
amount of time that patients were without disease progression, on average four months, compared to patients 
receiving chemotherapy alone (10.6 months versus 6.2 months).\line \line In a second 
Phase III study (E3200), conducted by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG), Avastin was also 
shown to significantly improve survival when added to another widely prescribed chemotherapy regimen 
(oxaliplatin/5-fluorouracil/leucovorin). With Avastin, patients who had failed previous irinotecan or 
5-FU containing chemotherapy for their disease, lived nearly two months longer, on average, compared 
to those who received chemotherapy alone (12.9 months vs. 10.8 months). \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 diseases, 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 drugs for cancer and transplantation and a market leader in 
virology. In 2006 sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totalled 33.3 billion Swiss francs, and the 
Diagnostics Division posted sales of 8.7 billion Swiss francs. Roche employs roughly 75,000 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 at 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 \line {\b Additional 
information:} \line - 
Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. (http://www.chugai-pharm.co.jp/english/index.html) \line - Roche in Oncology ( http://www.roche.com/mboncology-e.pdf) 
\line - Roche Health Kiosk on cancer (http://www.health-kiosk.ch/start_krebs)\line To access 
video clips, in broadcast standard, free of charge, please go to: www.thenewsmarket.com (http://www.thenewsmarket.com/). 
\line  
\line \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 {\b References} \line 1) Hurwitz, 
H, Fehrenbacher, L, Novotny, W, 
et al. Bevacizumab plus Irinotecan, Fluorouracil, and Leucovorin for Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. New 
England Journal of Medicine 2004; 350(23): 2335\u8211?2342 \line 2) Kabbinavar FF, Joseph Schulz 
J, McCleod M, et al. Addition of Bevacizumab to Bolus 5-FU/Leucovorin in First-Line Metastatic Colorectal 
Cancer: Results of a Randomized Phase II Trial.) J Clin Oncol 23:10.1200/JCO.2005.05.112, 2005\line 3) 
Mitchell EP, Alberts SR, Schwartz BJ, et al. High-dose bevacizumab in combination with FOLFOX4 improves 
survival in patients with previously treated advanced colorectal cancer: Results from the Eastern Cooperative 
Oncology Group (ECOG) study E3200. ASCO Gastrointestinal 2005 Cancer Symposium, January 2005 (abstract 
169a)\line 4) Koyame Y, Kotake K. Overview of colorectal cancer in Japan: report from the 
Registry of the Japanese Society for Cancer of the Colon and Rectum.; Dis Colon Rectum 1997, Oct, 40 
(10 Suppl): S2-9.\line 5) A.Oshima, T.Kuroishi, K.Tajima, Cancer White Paper -Incidence/Death/Progonosis 
- 2004\par}\line \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}
}