Roche gets USFDA Breakthrough Device Designation for blood test to support earlier Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis
Basel: Roche has announced that its Elecsys pTau217 assay has received Breakthrough Device Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
This blood test, which is being developed in collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company, will be used to help identify the presence or absence of amyloid pathology in individuals, which can help ensure they are able to receive appropriate care. This may include participation in clinical trials or access to approved disease-modifying therapies. If approved, the test could help rapidly broaden access to a more timely and accurate diagnosis and potentially mitigate the impact of Alzheimer’s disease on people and society.
“The incidence of dementia is growing worldwide, with 75 percent of cases remaining undiagnosed. Consequently, there is a critical role for Diagnostics to play in addressing this global health challenge,” said Matt Sause, CEO of Roche Diagnostics. “We believe pTau217 is going to be crucial in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, a condition where Roche Diagnostics is committed to improving the lives of patients worldwide. We plan to leverage our installed base of diagnostic systems, which is the largest in the world, to ensure we are able to create access to this test for those who need it the most.”
“The development of the Elecsys pTau217 plasma assay is another milestone in our collaboration with Roche Diagnostics that will advance the Alzheimer’s diagnostic ecosystem,” said Anne White, executive vice president of Eli Lilly and Company, and president of Lilly Neuroscience. “We’re excited to help meet the growing need for additional diagnostic tools to enable a timely and accurate diagnosis for people with Alzheimer’s disease.”
pTau217, which is a phosphorylated fragment of the protein tau, is a biomarker that has shown the ability in research settings to distinguish Alzheimer’s disease from other neurodegenerative disorders and has shown strong performance relative to other biomarkers.
Elecsys Phospho-Tau (217P) is intended to be an in-vitro diagnostic immunoassay for the quantitative determination of the protein Phospho-Tau (217P) (pTau217) in human plasma from individuals aged 60 years and older. The test is intended for use as an aid in identifying amyloid pathology, a pathological feature of Alzheimer’s disease.
A positive Elecsys pTau217 result indicates a high likelihood of having a positive amyloid PET/CSF result.
A negative Elecsys pTau217 result indicates a high likelihood of having a negative amyloid PET/ CSF result.
An indeterminate pTau217 result indicates uncertainty on the amyloid PET/CSF result.
The pTau217 result should be used in the diagnostic pathway in conjunction with other clinical information.
Today, the company’s Alzheimer’s portfolio spans investigational medicines for different targets, types and stages of the disease. This includes trontinemab, an innovative Brainshuttle anti-amyloid treatment that is specifically engineered to cross the blood-brain barrier. On the diagnostics side, it also includes approved and investigational tools, including digital and blood-based tests and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) assays, aiming to more effectively detect, diagnose and monitor the disease.
The Breakthrough Devices Program is a voluntary program for certain medical devices that provide for more effective treatment or diagnosis of a life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating disease or condition. This program is designed to expedite the development and review of these medical devices.
