NEW YORK (AP) – Genentech said the combination of its blockbuster cancer drug Avastin and Xeloda did not meet a late-stage study goal of extending the lives of advanced stomach cancer patients.
The company, a unit of Switzerland’s Roche, said it will submit the data and hopes to present full results from the late-stage study at the 2010 American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting, taking place between June 4 and June 8.
Avastin is already approved to treat advanced colorectal, breast, lung and kidney cancer. Xeloda is approved as a breast and colectoral cancer treatment. The late-stage study specifically involved patients who either had inoperable or advanced stomach cancer. It compared the treatment regimen of Avastin, Xeloda and chemotherapy with patients only taking chemotherapy.
Date: February 23, 2010
Source: Associated Press