Changing the way we view immune mediated diseases

When the immune system turns against the body, it doesn't just cause inflammation; it steals moments. From the grandparents with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who can’t keep up with their grandchildren because they feel like they’re breathing through a straw. To the young professional with IBD who maps out every restroom in the city before leaving the house, or the person with Lupus who might have to take 40 medicines every single day. And sadly, diseases caused by the immune system attacking the body, prematurely end the lives of millions of people every year. 

These individual struggles add up to make up a significant global burden of disease. Immune-mediated diseases carry a staggering socio-economic weight - conditions like Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and Lupus often strike during a person’s prime working years. Lost wages, early retirement, and workplace "presenteeism" - lead to a significant socioeconomic cost for society. Furthermore, when we look at diseases like Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), we see how health intersects with social disparity. SLE predominantly affects women of color, who often face additional barriers to specialized care. When we fail to treat these diseases effectively, we aren't just losing health; we are losing the contributions of people who are the pillars of their families and communities.

For more than 20 years, Roche has been at the forefront of developing medicines that have changed the lives of people with immune mediated diseases. And we remain committed to bringing new innovations that can improve the lives of patients and also bring value to society more widely. 

We are committed to finding solutions to tackle IBD and COPD as well as immune mediated kidney disease. We also know from experience that by exploring pan-immuno pathways, we can potentially find a biological ‘key’ designed for one door, might actually unlock another - meaning we can take medicines originally designed for one disease, and apply them to others. 

Working in Immunology at Roche, I have the privilege of working with some of the leading experts in the field, both within the company and within the wider community. And it is clear that as a scientific community, we are standing at the cusp of an exciting new era. We are no longer satisfied with simply managing symptoms or helping people live with a disease. Instead, we are pursuing the potential to fundamentally reprogram the immune system to stop diseases in their tracks. Our ultimate goal is to move from treatment to transformation, and we hope eventually, to cures, enabling people to fully contribute to their families, communities and a productive society. 

Advancing this level of care takes a community; science does not happen in a vacuum. We are committed to working with patients, clinicians, and policy stakeholders to ensure our breakthroughs fit into real life, not just a clinical trial.