EU approves Roche’s Avastin for platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer
Basel, 06 August 2014 EU approves Roche's Avastin for platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer First new treatment option for women in Europe in more than 15 years for most difficult to treat form of ovarian cancer Roche announced today that the European Commission (EU) approved the use of Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with paclitaxel, topotecan, or pegylated liposomal doxorubicin chemotherapy as a treatment for women with recurrent ovarian cancer that is resistant to platinum-containing chemotherapy. The EU approval was based on results of the phase III AURELIA study which involved women with recurrent, platinum-resistant ovarian cancer who received either chemotherapy or Avastin in combination with chemotherapy.1 Results showed that the addition of Avastin to chemotherapy gave a clinically meaningful benefit, nearly doubling the median progression free survival (PFS) from 3.4 months to 6.7 months (HR=0.38, p<0.0001).1,2 "European approval of Avastin for recurrent, platinum-resistant ovarian cancer is good news because Avastin can help women live longer without their cancer progressing, which is an important treatment goal in advanced disease," said Sandra Horning, M.D. Roche's Chief Medical Officer and Head, Global Product Development.
