BioCentury
ARTICLE | Product Development

O-ver and above

Potency key as obinutuzumab, Arzerra try to best Rituxan in CLL

June 10, 2013 7:00 AM UTC

Freshly unveiled data for obinutuzumab from Genentech Inc. and Roche and for Arzerra ofatumumab from GlaxoSmithKline plc and Genmab A/S showed similar progression-free survival relative to standard of care in chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients who are not candidates for highly toxic chemotherapy. While Arzerra may hold a small edge in safety, the signals so far are unlikely to be differentiating factors.

Data from the Roche sponsored CLL11 trial presented last week at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting provided the first Phase III data comparing obinutuzumab (GA101) plus chlorambucil to Rituxan rituximab plus chlorambucil and to chlorambucil alone, and specifically in a CLL population selected for unfitness...