Case Summary
CASE/0592/05/25 Abridged Complaint
COMPLAINANT V ROCHE
Alleged promotion on LinkedIn
This case was in relation to the alleged off licence promotion of Susvimo, a medicine licensed in the US but not licensed or approved for use in the UK, by a UK employee of Roche who ‘liked’ two LinkedIn posts. The LinkedIn posts related to two press releases, issued by Roche’s global headquarters in Basel and by Genentech in the US, announcing recent FDA approval of Susvimo. The posts included the name and indication of the medicine and were promotional in nature.
The complainant was contactable and described themselves as an industry professional.
The case preparation manager considered that the complaint met the criteria for the abridged complaints procedure as it was likely, in their view, that there had been a breach of the Code and it appeared that the central facts would not be disputed. By ‘liking’ the two LinkedIn posts at issue, the UK employee had disseminated the material to their LinkedIn connections in the UK, thereby promoting Susvimo prior to the grant of its marketing authorisation.
Roche accepted a breach of Clause 3.1 of the Code and provided the required undertaking and assurances.
The outcome under the 2024 Code of Practice was:
|
Breach of Clause 3.1 |
Promoting a medicine prior to the grant of its marketing authorisation |
Complaint received 24 May 2025
Case completed 16 July 2025