Roche, Novartis approvals in Europe signal more head-to-head competition

ZURICH: Swiss drugmakers Roche and Novartis each won European approval for drugs on Tuesday in a sign that the rival Basel-based companies are increasingly competing for the same patients.

Roche's Evrysdi, already approved in the United States, gained backing from the European Commission for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), where Novartis's $2.1 million per patient gene therapy Zolgensma has become the treatment of choice for infants diagnosed with the genetic, muscle-wasting disease. Separately, Novartis's Kesimpta, also with U.S. approval, won European regulators' blessing in multiple sclerosis, where Novartis hopes to lure patients away from Roche's $4 billion seller Ocrevus. The two drugs work similarly, though Novartis's Kesimpta is a shot, while Ocrevus is an infusion.