{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\cocoartf949\cocoasubrtf430 {\fonttbl\f0\froman\fcharset0 TimesNewRomanPSMT;\f1\fswiss\fcharset0 ArialMT;} {\margl1800\margr1600\margt500\margbl1440} {\pard\sa900\fs50\f0\i Media Release\par} {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 Basel, 17 April 2008\line \line {\b Roche continues solid sales growth in first quarter of 2008 - both divisions{\super 1} significantly outpace their markets} \line Double-digit growth of key products more than outweighs one-time impact of major Tamiflu pandemic orders in year-earlier period\line \line \line Release as PDF: \u160?English (http://www.roche.com/mr1q08e.pdf) \u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?German (http://www.roche.com/mr1q08d.pdf) \u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?French (http://www.roche.com/mr1q08f.pdf) \u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?\u160?Spanish (http://www.roche.com/mr1q08sp.pdf)\line \line Presentation as PDF (http://www.roche.com/irp1q08e.pdf): (English only)\line \line {\b Roche Group} \par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Group sales up 9% in local currencies (excluding pandemic Tamiflu) to 10.8 billion Swiss francs, 2% in Swiss francs and 17% in US dollars\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Including pandemic Tamiflu, Group sales totalled 10.9 billion francs, an increase of 2% in local currencies (10% in US dollars) and a decline of 4% in Swiss francs\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Roche confirms full-year outlook\par}\line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 {\b Pharmaceuticals Division} \par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - First quarter sales advance 9% in local currencies (excluding pandemic Tamiflu), or around twice as fast as the global market, with Roche Pharmaceuticals posting double-digit growth\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Main growth drivers are the Group\u8217?s five leading oncology medicines, plus key products CellCept and Bonviva/Boniva \u8211? all with double-digit increases\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Avastin receives accelerated approval in US for treatment of metastatic breast cancer\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Herceptin now also approved in Japan for treatment of HER2-positive early breast cancer\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Avastin and Xeloda receive broad approval extensions in EU for treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Actemra approved in Japan for rheumatoid arthritis \u8211? first approval worldwide in RA\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Major phase III study with CETP inhibitor R1658 for dyslipidemia starts\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Acquisition of Piramed strengthens Roche R&D pipeline in oncology and inflammatory disorders\par}\line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 {\b Diagnostics Division} \par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Divisional sales grow ahead of market, increasing 9% in local currencies (3% in Swiss francs, 19% in US dollars){\super 2} \par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Professional Diagnostics (10%) and Applied Science (19%) again the main growth drivers\par}{\pard\f0\li440\ri0\sl360\fs22 - Acquisition of Ventana completed\par}\line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs22 {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 Unless otherwise stated, all growth rates are based on local currencies. Pharmaceutical market growth according to IMS (to end January 2008).\par}\line \line Commenting on the Group\u8217?s sales performance in the first quarter of 2008, Roche CEO Severin Schwan said: \u8216?Roche is off to a very good start in 2008, considering the strong first-quarter benchmark set in 2007. Our cancer portfolio and other key products and business areas such as CellCept, Bonviva/Boniva, Professional Diagnostics and Applied Science achieved double-digit growth. These gains more than compensated for the almost 750 million francs in pandemic sales of Tamiflu recorded in the first quarter of 2007. Excluding pandemic sales of Tamiflu, both divisions achieved above-market sales growth. This means we are on track to achieve the goals we announced for 2008.\u8217?\line \line \line {\b Roche Group} \line \line {\b Including pandemic sales of Tamiflu} \line  20082007% Change% Change Sales from January to Marchm CHFmCHFIn CHFIn local currencies Pharmaceuticals Division8,5689,142-6+1         Roche 5,4985,702-4+1         Genentech 2,3992,547-6+9         Chugai 671893-25-23 Diagnostics Division2,2872,216+3+9 Roche Group10,85511,358-4+2 \line {\b Excluding pandemic sales of Tamiflu} \line  20082007% Change% Change Sales from January to Marchm CHFmCHFIn CHFIn local currencies Pharmaceuticals Division8,5238,396+2+9         Roche 5,4555,151+6+11         Genentech 2,3992,547-6+9         Chugai 669698-4-2 Diagnostics Division2,2872,216+3+9 Roche Group10,81010,612+2+9 \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 See attachment to this release for details on quarterly sales growth.\par}\line \line Excluding pandemic sales of Tamiflu to governments and corporations, the Roche Group posted sales of 10.8 billion Swiss francs in the first quarter of 2008, an increase of 9% in local currencies and 2% in Swiss francs (17% in US dollars) over the same period last year. Sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division grew 9% in local currencies (2% in Swiss francs, 17% in US dollars), with Roche Pharmaceuticals advancing 11% and Genentech 9%, while Chugai sales declined 2%. The Diagnostics Division recorded a sales increase of 9% in local currencies (3% in Swiss francs, 19% in US dollars).\line \line Including Tamiflu pandemic sales to governments and corporations, Roche Group sales increased 2% in local currencies to 10.9 billion francs. Due to the weakness of the US dollar, sales declined 4% in Swiss francs and rose 10% in dollars compared with the year-earlier period.\line \line {\b 2008 outlook confirmed} \line Barring unforeseen events, based on its solid first-quarter sales growth, Roche fully confirms its guidance for 2008 of a high single-digit sales increase for the Group , with above-market sales growth in both divisions{\super 3} . Despite considerably lower Tamiflu pandemic sales and significantly higher R&D spending, Roche is aiming for 2008 Core EPS at constant exchange rates to remain at least in line with the record level achieved in 2007.\line \line \line {\b Pharmaceuticals Division} \line Strong first quarter sales growth\line \line Excluding pandemic sales of Tamiflu to governments and corporations, the Pharmaceuticals Division delivered a strong first quarter, with sales rising 9% in local currencies (2% in Swiss francs, 17% in US dollars).On the same basis, the division recorded double-digit growth in North and Latin America, and single-digit growth in Western Europe, the CEMAI region{\super 4} and Asia\u8211?Pacific. Sales in Japan declined slightly for the quarter due to lower seasonal Tamiflu sales, lower Epogin sales and the return of a group of licensed products to Sanofi Aventis. Key products in the division\u8217?s oncology, metabolism/bone, transplantation and inflammation/autoimmune portfolios were the main growth drivers. As forecast, sales of Tamiflu continued to decline sharply due to the completion last year of most pandemic stockpiling orders from governments and corporations. This included sales amounting to three-quarters of a billion francs in the first quarter of 2007 alone.\line \line The acquisition of Piramed, announced in April, adds promising compounds to the division\u8217?s R&D pipeline in the areas of oncology and inflammatory disorders.\line \line {\b Oncology \u8211? flagship cancer medicines gain further indications} \line The division\u8217?s oncology portfolio, which accounts for over half of the Roche Group\u8217?s pharmaceutical sales, grew 15%, with all major products contributing double-digit gains. \line \line With first-quarter sales advancing 17%, MabThera/Rituxan (rituximab), the leading treatment for patients with non-Hodgkin\u8217?s lymphoma (NHL), maintained the solid double-digit growth seen throughout 2007. Sales in Western Europe, Asia\u8211?Pacific and Latin America were especially strong. Growth is being driven by increased prescriptions in the first-line indolent and aggressive NHL settings. In addition, use of MabThera/Rituxan as maintenance therapy for relapsed follicular lymphoma continues to rise, and the product is establishing itself as the standard of care for this condition. In January a major phase III study investigating MabThera in the first-line treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the most common form of adult leukemia, reached its primary endpoint, showing that MabThera in combination with chemotherapy significantly increased progression-free survival, or the time patients live without their cancer progressing. This study will form the basis for a planned regulatory filing in Europe later this year.\line \line Herceptin (trastuzumab), which is designed to treat a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer (HER2-positive) that accounts for 20\u8211?30% of all cases, continued to record double-digit growth in the first quarter (11%). In February Chugai received approval from the Japanese health authorities for the use of Herceptin in the post-operative adjuvant treatment of women with HER2-positive early breast cancer. The approval means that thousands of women in Japan with HER2-positive breast cancer now have access to Herceptin as the foundation of care across all stages of the disease.\line \line Avastin (bevacizumab), the first anti-angiogenic therapy to demonstrate overall and/or progression-free survival benefits in advanced colorectal, lung, breast and kidney cancer, continued to record strong sales growth in all regions (35% overall). Growth was particularly strong in Europe/Rest of World{\super 5} (78%), and initial uptake in Japan is encouraging. In January Roche received EU approval for broader use of Avastin in metastatic colorectal cancer: the medicine can now be used in combination with any chemotherapy, including Xeloda, in all lines of treatment. As a result, most colorectal cancer patients with metastatic disease are now eligible for treatment with Avastin. In February the AVADO study investigating Avastin plus docetaxel in metastatic breast cancer met its primary endpoint of significantly improving progression-free survival. AVADO is the second phase III study to confirm the benefit Avastin brings to patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer. The results of the first phase III study with the product in first-line metastatic breast cancer (E2100) showed that adding Avastin to paclitaxel doubled the chance of patients being alive without the disease advancing, compared with paclitaxel alone. Based on these data, in February the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted accelerated approval for Avastin, in combination with paclitaxel chemotherapy, for the first-line treatment of patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.\line \line Sales of Tarceva (erlotinib), the only epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor with proven survival benefits in the treatment of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and pancreatic cancer, continued to grow strongly in the first quarter (28%), particularly in the EU (40%). Following its launch by Chugai in December, early uptake of the product in Japan has exceeded expectations. Tarceva is now approved in 88 countries worldwide and continues to gain market share in both indications.\line \line Xeloda (capecitabine), an oral anticancer medicine that greatly simplifies treatment, continued to post solid double-digit sales growth across all regions (13% overall), driven by continued adoption of the product in preference to intravenous 5-fluorouracil. In February the EU authorities approved Xeloda for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer in combination with any chemotherapy in all lines of treatment, with or without Avastin. Also in February, Chugai filed an application in Japan to expand the product\u8217?s approval to allow its combination with oxaliplatin, with or without Avastin, for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer. \line \line {\b Anemia \u8212? Mircera launched in 13 countries} \line The market rollout of Mircera (methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta), for the treatment of symptomatic anemia associated with chronic kidney disease, is continuing, and the product is now available in 13 countries worldwide. Launches in further major markets, including Italy and France, are pending. Mircera\u8217?s European label differentiates it from other erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) by allowing initial treatment using once-fortnightly administration to correct hemoglobin levels in all chronic kidney disease patients. Once correction is achieved, patients can change to a once-monthly maintenance schedule; patients being treated with any other ESA can also be switched directly to once-monthly Mircera.\line \line In the United States the lawsuit relating to Mircera brought against Roche by Amgen alleging patent infringement is ongoing. A federal judge in Boston recently declined to amend a preliminary injunction preventing Roche from marketing Mircera in the US; Roche has now filed an appeal with the Federal Circuit Court of Appeal.\line Combined sales of Roche\u8217?s NeoRecormon and Chugai\u8217?s Epogin (epoetin beta) declined 13% in a highly competitive market environment characterised by increasing price pressure and, in Europe, recent launches of biosimilar versions of epoetin alfa.\line \line {\b Transplantation \u8212? steady growth maintained} \line CellCept (mycophenolate mofetil), the world\u8217?s most widely used immunosuppressant medication, generated a double-digit sales increase (11%) in the first quarter, driven by strong demand in North America and the CEMAI{\super 6} region.\line \line {\b Virology \u8211? Tamiflu pandemic stockpiling orders almost completed} \line As forecast, the sharp decline in sales of the anti-influenza medicine Tamiflu seen in the second half of last year continued in the first quarter of 2008. Following the completion of most of the stockpiling orders received from governments and corporations to date, pandemic sales of the product declined by 701 million Swiss francs for the quarter. This was partly offset, however, by an increase of 114 million francs in seasonal sales; most of this increase occurred in the US.\line \line Sales of Pegasys (peginterferon alfa-2a), for the treatment of hepatitis B and C, declined 3% in the first quarter. Strong volume growth in Asia was offset by a continued market volume decline in the US. Pegasys gained additional market share in the US and other key western markets. In Japan, where Chugai is steadily building market share after launching Pegasys plus Copegus (ribavarin) in 2007 as combination therapy for chronic hepatitis C, sales of Pegasys doubled in comparison with the year-earlier period.\line \line Combined sales of Valcyte (valgancyclovir) and Cymevene (ganciclovir), the standard of care for the treatment of cytomegalovirus disease in transplant patients and people with HIV/AIDS, showed robust growth of 9%.\line \line Global sales of the HIV medicines Invirase/Fortovase (saquinavir) increased 2% to 47 million Swiss francs in the first quarter, driven by strong growth outside the US and Western Europe. Sales of Fuzeon (enfuvirtide) declined sharply, in line with expectations, to 46 million francs (-38%), reflecting the availability of newer, orally administered HIV medications. Following approval by the European Commission in January of a change to the manufacturing process for Viracept (nelfinavir), Roche expects to start resupplying the medicine to patients in EU countries early in the second quarter.\line \line {\b Autoimmune diseases \u8211? Actemra approved for RA in Japan} \line Uptake of MabThera/Rituxan (rituximab), the first and only selective B cell therapy approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), continues to grow. Increasingly, doctors are switching patients to MabThera/Rituxan after an inadequate response to one TNF inhibitor. MabThera/Rituxan is currently in phase III development for use in patients with earlier RA who have not responded sufficiently to treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). A major trial in this programme recently met its primary endpoint, with significantly more patients treated with MabThera plus methotrexate (MTX) achieving an improvement in disease signs and symptoms compared with those who received MTX alone. A phase III radiographic study assessing the product\u8217?s ability to inhibit structural joint damage in early RA is progressing as planned. Roche plans to use the signs and symptoms data in conjunction with the radiographic data to support a filing for early RA indications in 2009.\line \line In April 2008 Chugai received marketing approval in Japan for Actemra (tocilizumab) for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, the medicine\u8217?s first approval worldwide in this indication. Actemra is a first-in-class humanised monoclonal antibody designed to block the effects of interleukin-6 (IL-6), representing a new approach to the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Marketing applications filed by Roche in 2007 for the same indication are currently being reviewed by the US and EU authorities.\line \line {\b Metabolic Diseases \u8211? Bonviva/Boniva posts strong sales growth} \line Following the strong gains seen in 2007, global sales of Bonviva/Boniva (ibandronic acid), the first and only once-monthly oral bisphosphonate approved for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis, showed a healthy increase in the first quarter of 2008, especially in Europe. In the United States Boniva posted robust growth despite the introduction of generic versions of another bisphosphonate in February.\line \line Sales of the prescription weight-loss medication Xenical (orlistat 120 mg) continued to decline worldwide. Roche\u8217?s partner GlaxoSmithKline has filed marketing applications for non-prescription orlistat 60 mg in the EU and elsewhere, as planned, with decisions expected by the end of 2008. This follows the successful launch of alli (non-prescription orlistat 60 mg) in the US in 2007. As licensor, Roche receives royalties on sales of alli.\line \line {\b Development \u8212? major projects on track } \line As of 31 March 2008, the Pharmaceuticals Division\u8217?s R&D pipeline (phase I to III/registration) included 62 new molecular entities (NMEs) and 57 additional indications (AIs). During the first quarter five projects entered phase I, one phase II and three phase III development; no phase II or phase III projects were discontinued; and four major projects received regulatory approval.\line \line Pertuzumab, the first in a new class of targeted agents known as HER dimerisation inhibitors, is being tested in a phase III study (CLEOPATRA) for which patient enrolment started in February. CLEOPATRA is designed to show whether pertuzumab combined with Herceptin plus docetaxel can increase the time that women with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer can live without their disease progressing and ultimately improve survival. This follows positive results from a phase II trial in patients with pretreated HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, in which high response rates were seen in patients who received pertuzumab in combination with Herceptin. In the early breast cancer setting, a randomised phase II study of neoadjuvant treatment in patients with HER2-positive disease has commenced. As in an earlier US trial, a phase II study in platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer showed that, in the overall trial population, adding pertuzumab to chemotherapy produced no significant benefit over chemotherapy alone; pertuzumab was well tolerated with no unexpected safety findings. Subgroup analysis is ongoing to evaluate whether biomarkers can identify patients who might derive clinical benefit in this setting.\line \line Ocrelizumab is a humanised anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody being developed by Roche, Genentech and Chugai for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. Phase III trials in rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and lupus nephritis are progressing as planned.\line \line A phase III clinical trial investigating R1658 (JTT-705), a cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor licensed from Japan Tobacco, in the treatment of dyslipidemia commenced in April 2008. Data presented at the American Congress of Cardiology in Chicago in February show that R1658 is well tolerated and has a good safety profile when given alone or in combination with statins.\line \line The analysis of phase II data for R1583 (BIM 51077, licensed from Ipsen), a long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogue being developed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, is complete. The results are encouraging. A decision on moving the compound into phase III development will be taken by mid- year.\line \line The Group\u8217?s early-stage clinical development portfolio continues to make significant progress. In particular, R1678, a GlyT1 inhibitor, entered phase II clinical development for schizophrenia in the first quarter.\line \line \line {\b Diagnostics Division} \line Professional Diagnostics and Applied Science continue to drive sales growth\line \line Roche\u8217?s Diagnostics Division posted sales of 2.3 billion Swiss francs in the first three months of 2008, an above-market increase of 9% in local currencies (3% in Swiss francs, 19% in US dollars) over the year-earlier period.{\super 7} Professional Diagnostics, the division\u8217?s largest unit, reported a 10% sales increase, while Applied Science\u8217?s sales growth accelerated to 19%. Sales by the Diabetes Care business declined 3% amid slower market growth. Molecular Diagnostics\u8217? sales returned to growth, advancing 4% for the quarter. Divisional sales showed single-digit gains in North America (stable excluding Ventana) and the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and double-digit increases in Asia\u8211?Pacific, Latin America and Japan. The acquisition of US-based Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., was completed in February.\line \line {\b Professional Diagnostics \u8212? immunochemistry sales grow by double digits for 29th straight quarter} \line Roche Professional Diagnostics reported total sales of 1,070 million Swiss francs, an increase of 10%. This was roughly twice the market growth rate. Once again, growth was led by immunochemistry sales, up 20%. This was the 29th consecutive quarter of double-digit growth for Roche\u8217?s immunochemistry portfolio. Clinical chemistry sales grew 1% for the quarter.\line \line Tests for the cardiac markers troponin T and NT-proBNP and for the thyroid marker TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) remained the top-selling assays. During the quarter Professional Diagnostics rolled out the first fully automated TSH receptor antibody assay. A second-generation version of the Elecsys NT-proBNP assay received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and will be launched in the United States shortly.\line \line Demand remains strong across all regions for the cobas 6000 series of immunochemistry and clinical chemistry instruments for medium-volume laboratories.\line \line An anti-HCV (hepatitis C virus) antibody assay for use on the stand-alone Elecsys 2010 and cobas e 411 systems was launched in the first quarter in Europe. This assay received CE mark certification for use on the Modular E170 and cobas e 601 consolidated systems in early April.\line \line Products for decentralised testing also contributed to growth, with cardiovascular instruments and reagents for hospital point-of-care settings showing double-digit sales gains. In ambulatory care, sales were helped by the further rollout of Accutrend Plus, a handheld device for measuring cholesterol, glucose, triglycerides and lactate. Hematology sales were also up strongly for the quarter, with double-digit increases in the EMEA region and Latin America.\line \line {\b Diabetes Care \u8212? market position maintained} \line Roche Diabetes Care\u8217?s first-quarter sales declined 3% to 699 million Swiss francs, largely as a result of slower market growth and uncertainty about new competitive bidding practices in the United States. Sales growth was robust in Eastern Europe, Asia\u8211?Pacific and Japan, while revenues in Western Europe continued to grow in line with the market. US sales declined for the quarter, mainly due to the anticipated impact of Medicare competitive bidding on mail order sales of diabetes testing products.\line \line The blood glucose monitoring business was led by sales of Accu-Chek Aviva, Accu-Chek Compact Plus and Accu-Chek Performa. The Accu-Chek Performa monitoring system has become a significant growth driver, with sales expected to gain further momentum globally during the rest of the year. It was introduced in eight new markets in Latin America and Asia in the first quarter. Additional launches of the new Accu-Chek Compact Plus helped to consolidate Roche\u8217?s lead in the market for all-in-one glucose monitoring systems. Insulin delivery sales maintained momentum on a quarter-by-quarter basis.\line \line Uptake of the Accu-Chek 360\u176? and Accu-Chek 360\u176? View has been positive since their launch in 2007. The rollout of these software packages for managing, analysing and visualising diabetes data continued during the first quarter with launches in additional key markets.\line \line {\b Molecular Diagnostics \u8211? continued growth in virology} \line At 270 million Swiss francs, Roche Molecular Diagnostics\u8217? overall sales were up 4% from the first three months of 2007. Virology, the business area\u8217?s largest segment, posted 4% revenue growth, helped by a strong US performance. Sales of blood screening products declined 8%, primarily as a result of increased pressure on prices.\line \line Rapid adoption of the automated Cobas AmpliPrep/Cobas TaqMan (CAP/CTM) platform in the US and Asia-Pacific markets remained a key growth driver for the virology business. The CAP/CTM viral load monitoring tests for HIV and hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV) also continued to fuel growth in Europe and Asia\u8211?Pacific. In the United States, only the HIV test is currently available for this platform. A filing for the HCV test is pending with the FDA; US approval and launch are expected in the second half of this year.\line A filing was submitted in March to Japan\u8217?s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare for approval of Version 2.0 of the CAP/CTM HBV viral load monitoring test. Also in March, an application was filed in Europe for CE mark certification of a new, more sensitive and specific version of the Cobas TaqMan CT Test for chlamydial infection.\line \line In blood screening, Roche Molecular Diagnostics\u8217? second largest segment, US approval of the cobas TaqScreen MPX Test is expected during the second quarter of this year. The test is designed to simultaneously detect HIV, HBV and HCV in donated blood. In June the cobas TaqScreen MPX Test will be implemented on the fully integrated cobas s 401 system at the Japanese Red Cross. Under an agreement signed last year, these products will be used to screen the entire JRC blood supply (five million blood donations annually) for the next five years.\line \line {\b Applied Science \u8211? sales of sequencing products doubled} \line Roche Applied Science increased its market share significantly as sales rose 19% for the quarter to 183 million Swiss francs. This was roughly three times the growth rate of the life science market. The sequencing business doubled compared with the first quarter of 2007, led by sales of the ultrafast Genome Sequencer FLX system. Products for PCR sample preparation and real-time quantitative PCR analysis, including the MagNA Pure and LightCycler 480 instruments, delivered strong double-digit growth. Roche NimbleGen microarrays were also an important growth driver.\line \line New Genome Sequencer FLX and LightCycler 480 instruments were launched during the quarter. The update of the Genome Sequencer FLX offers even greater flexibility and lower costs per read than its predecessor. The new LightCycler 480 System II features enhanced analysis software for greater efficiency over a range of applications. During the first quarter Roche Applied Science also launched high-density NimbleGen SeqCap sequence capture microarrays to support targeted, higher throughput DNA sequencing.\line \line {\b Tissue Diagnostics \u8212? Ventana acquisition completed} \line In February Roche completed the acquisition of US-based Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., a leader in tissue-based diagnostics. Ventana develops, manufactures and markets automated instrument-reagent systems used in anatomical pathology laboratories to diagnose and guide the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases.\line Ventana sales totalling 65 million Swiss francs, representing sales from the date of acquisition in early February to 31 March 2008, are included in the Roche consolidated results. These additional sales contributed between 3 and 4 percentage points to the Diagnostics Division\u8217?s local-currency sales growth. \line On a stand-alone basis, the Ventana business\u8217?s sales for the whole of the first quarter totalled 84 million US dollars. This was an increase of 27% in local currencies (31% in dollars) over the same period in 2007 and approximately twice the market growth rate. Growth was driven by the continued strength of Ventana\u8217?s core advanced staining business (immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridisation systems and reagents), further acceleration in sales of the Symphony primary (hematoxylin-eosin) staining system and the addition of Spring Bioscience, a reagent developer acquired by Ventana in the third quarter of 2007.\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 the world\u8217?s biggest biotech company and an innovator of 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 the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics and drugs for cancer and transplantation, and is a market leader in virology. It is also active in other major therapeutic areas such as autoimmune diseases, inflammatory and metabolic disorders and diseases of the central nervous system. In 2007 sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totalled 36.8 billion Swiss francs, and the Diagnostics Division posted sales of 9.3 billion francs. Roche has R&D agreements and strategic alliances with numerous partners, including majority ownership interests in Genentech and Chugai, and invested over 8 billion Swiss francs in R&D in 2007. Worldwide, the Group employs about 79,000 people. Additional information 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 Annex (http://www.roche.com/mr1q08ane.pdf)\line \line {\b Additional information} \line - Roche Pharma pipeline\line \line {\b Next events} \line - Half-year results 2008: 24 July 2008 (tentative date)\line \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 1) \u160?Excluding Tamiflu pandemic sales, including Ventana\line 2) \u160?Including Ventana\par}{\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 \line 3) \u160?Excluding Tamiflu pandemic sales and Ventana\line 4) \u160?Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, Indian Subcontinent\line 5) \u160?Roche defines Europe/Rest of World as covering Europe and all other countries except Japan and the United States\line 6) \u160?Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, Indian Subcontinent\line 7) \u160?Including Ventana\line \par}\line \line {\pard\f0\li0\ri0\sa360\sl360\fs18 Disclaimer: Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements\line This document contains certain forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as \u8216?believes\u8217?, \u8216?expects\u8217?, \u8216?anticipates\u8217?, \u8216?projects\u8217?, \u8216?intends\u8217?, \u8216?should\u8217?, \u8216?seeks\u8217?, \u8216?estimates\u8217?, \u8216?future\u8217? or similar expressions or by discussion of, among other things, strategy, goals, plans or intentions. Various factors may cause actual results to differ materially in the future from those reflected in forward-looking statements contained in this document, among others: (1) pricing and product initiatives of competitors; (2) legislative and regulatory developments and economic conditions; (3) delay or inability in obtaining regulatory approvals or bringing products to market; (4) fluctuations in currency exchange rates and general financial market conditions; (5) uncertainties in the discovery, development or marketing of new products or new uses of existing products, including without limitation negative results of clinical trials or research projects, unexpected side-effects of pipeline or marketed products; (6) increased government pricing pressures; (7) interruptions in production; (8) loss of or inability to obtain adequate protection for intellectual property rights; (9) litigation; (10) loss of key executives or other employees; and (11) adverse publicity and news coverage. The statement regarding earnings per share growth is not a profit forecast and should not be interpreted to mean that Roche\u8217?s earnings or earnings per share for any current or future period will necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings or earnings per share of Roche.\line \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} }