Roche Ties European Investment to Drug Rewards

Roche is developing a daily experimental pill to prevent breast-cancer recurrence, and its chief executive says the company may invest only in countries that reward pharmaceutical innovation. The company wants new treatments, while urging governments to support the industry; patients’ access to medicines and Roche’s investment decisions now share the same debate.

A patient’s account, and an experimental drug

In a Bloomberg report published October 22, 2026, Ulrike Isselhard, a mother of three from Bamberg, Germany, said she credited giredestrant, an experimental pill she takes each morning, with her recovery. Cancer disrupted her life for close to a year. Surgery to remove a breast and two rounds of chemotherapy left her exhausted, weakened her optimism and caused her hair to fall out.

She’s back at full-time work and cycles more than 3 kilometres to her office. “My life is exactly like it was before I got sick,” she said. “Except that I don't need to wear a bra anymore.” Her experience is one person’s account; the article describes giredestrant as experimental and intended to prevent recurrence. Roche says the drug could one day surpass Herceptin, its former blockbuster.

The investment ultimatum

Thomas Schinecker, Roche's chief executive officer, said Europe doesn't adequately reward pharmaceutical innovation or support the industry, depriving patients of access to the newest medicines. “The US and Asia really play to win, and I feel Europe is more and more playing not to lose,” he said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. Roche would “only invest in countries in the future that are also going to reward innovation.”

Schinecker spoke after Roche paused investments in Germany to protest the government's cost-cutting health-care reform. On Thursday, he said Germany and other countries were “not really investing in growth,” echoing criticism from others in the industry. The government wants to cut costs and address ballooning deficits; Roche is making investment choices in response to that policy dispute. The company's warning puts its own commercial priorities directly into the debate over health spending and access.

Roche is seeking new medicines to replenish its pipeline and had struck six agreements in China since August alone. Asia accounted for half of the company’s deals last year, with the remainder in the United States, Schinecker said. Eli Lilly, a U.S. drugmaker, and Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim have also said they would cancel some investments in Germany.

Sales, forecasts and the next pipeline

Roche reported quarterly sales above expectations on Thursday but left its annual outlook unchanged, disappointing investors who had hoped for an upgrade. Revenue increased 8% to CHF16.1 billion ($19.7 billion), helped by Xolair, an older asthma and allergy drug facing cheaper competitors. Roche shares fell less than 1% in Zurich trading. The company restated its forecast for high-single-digit earnings growth and mid-single-digit revenue growth for the year.

The company is investing in multiple sclerosis and oncology, including giredestrant. It also needs new medicines and a recovery in diagnostics as sales of older treatments fade. First approved more than 20 years ago, Xolair is being used to reduce the risk of dangerous reactions such as anaphylaxis in people with food allergies. Roche said it expected the drug to keep growing next year, even as cheaper copies become available.

Newer blockbusters also gained: Vabysmo, an eye drug; Ocrevus, for multiple sclerosis; and Hemlibra, for hemophilia. Michael Leuchten, an analyst at Jefferies, wrote that the decision not to raise guidance “should raise some questions about the growth trajectory into 2027.” Roche shares had risen about 19% in the year to Wednesday, more than other large European pharmaceutical companies. Swiss rival Novartis, facing a patent cliff and recent research setbacks, had gained 16% over the same period. Patients, governments and investors are judging what pharmaceutical innovation should deliver by different measures.