Drug Discovery and Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Genomics/Proteomics
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • R&D 100 Awards
  • Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50

Avastin Approved For Kidney Cancer

By Drug Discovery Trends Editor | August 7, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) – Biotech drugmaker Genentech Inc. said Sunday the Food and Drug Administration approved its cancer treatment Avastin for a new use against a form of kidney cancer, marking the sixth approval for the blockbuster drug.

Avastin is already approved to treat certain types of lung, breast and colon cancer.

FDA regulators cleared the injectable treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma, the most common form of kidney cancer. Roughly 50,000 new cases of the disease are diagnosed in the U.S. each year, according to the National Cancer Institute.

South San Francisco, Calif.-based Genentech is owned by drugmaker Roche, based in Basel, Switzerland.

Avastin was Genentech’s top-selling product last year with revenue of $2.69 billion. However, sales growth has been slowing. Analysts say the drug is likely reaching a saturation point in the market and will need additional FDA approvals to continue growing.

In April, a study showed Avastin failed to prevent colon cancer from recurring in patients who had undergone surgery, sending Roche shares lower in trading.

Initially approved in 2004, Avastin was the first drug to fight cancer by choking off blood flow to tumors. Such “targeted therapies” were considered a significant advance beyond chemotherapy.

Date: August 2, 2009
Source: Associated Press


Filed Under: Drug Discovery

 

Related Articles Read More >

Takeda Pharmaceutical in the Drug Discovery & Development Pharma 50
Takeda’s Takhzyro fares well in pediatric hereditary angioedema study
Novartis in the Pharma 50
Novartis to cut up to 8,000 positions
Gilead Sciences in the Drug Discovery & Development Pharma 50
Gilead resubmits application to FDA for twice-yearly HIV drug lenacapavir
George Floyd mural
How the pandemic and George Floyd made clinical trial diversity a priority

MEDTECH 100 INDEX

Medtech 100 logo
Market Summary > Current Price
The MedTech 100 is a financial index calculated using the BIG100 companies covered in Medical Design and Outsourcing.

Need Drug Discovery news in a minute?

We Deliver!
Drug Discovery & Development Enewsletters get you caught up on all the mission critical news you need. Sign up today.
Enews Signup
Drug Discovery and Development
  • MASSDEVICE
  • DEVICETALKS
  • Medical Design & Outsourcing
  • MEDICAL TUBING + EXTRUSION
  • MEDTECH 100
  • Medical Design Sourcing
  • Subscribe to our Free E-Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • R&D World
  • Drug Delivery Business News
  • Pharmaceutical Processing World

Copyright © 2022 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Drug Discovery & Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Genomics/Proteomics
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • R&D 100 Awards
  • Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50