Roche’s investigational bispecific antibody faricimab has been found to extend the time between treatments by up to four months in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) and neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD).

In the YOSEMITE and RHINE studies in DME and the TENAYA and LUCERNE studies in nAMD, approximately half of participants eligible for extended dosing with faricimab were able to be treated every four months in the first year.

Results from the four Phase III studies showed that faricimab, when given at intervals of up to four months, offered non-inferior vision gains compared to Regeneron’s Eylea (aflibercept), given every two months.

Roche added that faricimab is the first injectable eye medicine to achieve this length of time between treatments in Phase III studies for DME and nAMD.

“These positive results show the potential for faricimab as the first new type of medicine in 15 years for people with neovascular age-related macular degeneration and in close to a decade in diabetic macular edema,” said Levi Garraway, chief medical officer and head of global product development.

“This is an exciting time for our ophthalmology clinical development programme, with multiple phase III successes for two medicines from our late-stage pipeline. We hope to bring these potential treatments to people living with vision-threatening retinal conditions as soon as possible,” he added.