The FDA said today it is planning to rescind its approval of Genentech’s bevacizumab (Avastin) as a treatment for breast cancer. The drug, a targeted antibody drug that chokes off blood flow to tumors, is also approved for colon and lung cancer, and will remain so. The benefits of using the treatment for breast cancer has been more controversial, particularly since July, when an FDA advisory panel voted 12-1 in favor of withdrawing the breast cancer approval, as noted today by Andrew Pollack of the New York Times. Genentech, a unit of Switzerland-based Roche, plans to request a hearing to appeal the decision, the company said in a statement.
Author: Luke Timmerman
Luke is an award-winning journalist specializing in life sciences. He has served as national biotechnology editor for Xconomy and national biotechnology reporter for Bloomberg News. Luke got started covering life sciences at The Seattle Times, where he was the lead reporter on an investigation of doctors who leaked confidential information about clinical trials to investors. The story won the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award and several other national prizes. Luke holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and during the 2005-2006 academic year, he was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.
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