EMA/CHMP backs Roche's Avastin plus chemotherapy in advanced cervical cancer

The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has issued a positive opinion on the use of Swiss pharma giant Roche (ROG: SIX) Avastin (bevacizumab) in combination with standard chemotherapy (paclitaxel and cisplatin or, alternatively, paclitaxel and topotecan in patients who cannot receive platinum therapy) for the treatment of adult patients with persistent, recurrent or metastatic carcinoma of the cervix.

Cervical cancer is most commonly diagnosed in younger women, those between the ages of 35 and 44, and every year over 30,000 women in the European Union are diagnosed with the disease. The combination of Avastin and chemotherapy would be the first new treatment in advanced cervical cancer to extend life in nearly a decade, noted Roche. In its current cancer indications, Avastin generated sales of 6.42 billion Swiss francs ($6.8 billion) in 2014.

Step closer to much needed treatment option