There is wide documentation of the relative ineffectiveness of Avastin (bevacizumab) in breast cancer. The drug simply doesn’t extend the lives of those treated significantly.
Why? It ‘s been an open question with the drug company maintaining that the drug costing between $75,000 and $120,000/year for treatments has some effect and that is enough to warrant it’s continued use. The FDA differed and removed the breast cancer indication, though some insurers for some some reason continue to pay.
There is now an explanation why the drug failed.
Antiangiogenic therapy has been thought to hold significant potential for the treatment of cancer. However, the efficacy of such treatments, especially in breast cancer patients, has been called into question, as recent clinical trials reveal only limited effectiveness of antiangiogenic agents in prolonging patient survival. New research using preclinical models further suggests that antiangiogenic agents actually increase invasive and metastatic properties of breast cancer cells. We demonstrate that by generating intratumoral hypoxia in human breast cancer xenograpfts, the antiangiogenic agents sunitinib and bevacizumab increase the population of cancer stem cells.
If the finding is confirmed it provides an explanation of the mediocre results in breast and other cancers for this drug. It raises question about it’s continued use and certainly would argue against using it alone either as a primary treatment or maintenance therapy option.
Medicynical Note: One hopes this is new information and that the drug company was not previously aware of the increase population of stems cell generated by presumed antiangiogenic caused hypoxia.
More broadly, how can it be that our pharmaceutical industry sells drugs (sometimes even effective drugs) at twice the median and average income of citizens. This is not a sustainable model either for business or for health care.
There’s obviously something wrong with our drug development system; drug patents: our non-system of health care; and our payment schemes. If we ultimately want to reform health care these issues need to be addressed.
Medicynic 