Elderly People With Advanced Bowel Cancer Do Just As Well As Younger People When Treated With Avastin® (Bevacizumab) With Chemotherapy

Date: Jan-29-2013First randomized study prospectively evaluating Avastin in combination with chemotherapy specifically in elderly patients with advanced bowel cancer shows it can significantly stall disease more than chemotherapy alone

Just a month after a leading charity warned that ageism in the NHS is stopping older cancer patients getting better treatments1 and the Health Secretary pledged to improve cancer treatment for those over 70,2 new data shows that elderly people with advanced bowel cancer, a disease which disproportionally affects older people, can benefit from treatment to the same degree as younger patients as demonstrated in previous clinical trials.3,4,5

The results of the phase III AVEX trial, presented today at the Gastrointestinal Cancer Symposium in San Francisco, show that Avastin in combination with Xeloda® (capecitabine) can significantly extend the time people aged over 70 live without their previously untreated advanced bowel cancer worsening - by 4 months - compared to Xeloda alone (median progression free survival of 9.1 months compared to 5.1 months respectively, HR =0 .53, pchemotherapy with capecitabine and bevacizumab is a valuable treatment option which is well tolerated and can be administered as an outpatient. Improving outcomes in older patients with cancer is a high priority for clinicians and the AVEX trial provides solid evidence that such trials are feasible and impact on patient care."

Avastin was generally well tolerated in the AVEX trial and the safety profile consistent with previously reported data for Avastin in combination with Xeloda.3,6 Avastin has a well-established tolerability profile and the most frequently observed adverse drug reactions in clinical trials for metastatic colorectal cancer were hypertension, fatigue, diarrhoea and proteinuria. The most common side effects are generally manageable, for example, hypertension can generally be managed with conventional antihypertensive treatment.6

The number of people diagnosed with colorectal cancer each day in the UK totals 115, and the disease is responsible for 16,000 deaths a year.7

About the AVEX trial

Patients ≥70 years with mCRC, for whom single-agent chemotherapy (i.e. Xeloda) was deemed appropriate, were randomized 1:1 to receive first-line Xeloda(1000 mg/m2 bid days 1-14) as monotherapy or in combination with Avastin (7.5 mg/kg every three weeks). The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary endpoints included overall survival (OS), overall response rate (ORR), and safety. The study was powered to show a difference in PFS, but not OS, between treatment arms. PFS and OS estimates were calculated using Kaplan-Meier methods. The study included 280 patients across 10 countries. Median age at enrollment was 76 years (range, 70-87), and 91.1% had an ECOG performance status of 0-1. Baseline patient and disease characteristics were well balanced between arms.

About Avastin

Avastin is approved in the EU for the treatment of the advanced stages of five common cancer types: colorectal cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, kidney cancer and ovarian cancer.6 More than 1.3 million patients have been treated with Avastin so far.8 Please refer to the Avastin Summary of Product Characteristics for full details, available here. 6

View drug information on Avastin; Xeloda.
Courtesy: Medical News Today Note: Any medical information available in this news section is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional.