Roche’s Avastin recommended for EU ovarian cancer indication

Roche has been granted a recommendation from Europe's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) for the approval of Avastin as a recurrent, platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer therapy.

The European Medicines Agency committee has endorsed the drug for use in combination with carboplatin and gemcitabine chemotherapy, based on the progression-free survival benefits demonstrated by Avastin in a phase III trial.

Avastin functions by precisely targeting and inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor, a protein that plays a key role in tumour growth, and can be combined effectively with a wide range of cancer drugs and chemotherapies.

Dr Hal Barron, Roche's chief medical officer and head of global product development, said: "An approval for women with recurrent disease would be another significant advance following Avastin's approval last year for the treatment of women with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer."

Last month, the company published data from a phase III study showing the benefits Avastin can provide in the treatment of glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.