Adding Bevacizumab ( Avastin ) to chemotherapy as a treatment for newly diagnosed ovarian cancer reduces the risk of disease progression during the first year of treatment.

The ICON7 trial included 1528 women with high-risk early or advanced stage epithelial ovarian cancer, primary peritoneal cancer or Fallopian tube cancer.

After preparatory surgery, the women were randomly assigned to one of two treatment regimens: 6 cycles of Carboplatin and Paclitaxel chemotherapy given once every three weeks for six cycles; or the same chemotherapy plus Bevacizumab given concurrently and then on its own as a maintenance treatment for up to a further 12 cycles.

ICON7 met its primary endpoint and demonstrated that at 12 months the risk of developing further progression of ovarian cancer was reduced by 15% when compared to the risk of progression seen with chemotherapy treatment alone.

With regard to overall survival, preliminary data have shown an encouraging early trend with fewer deaths seen in patients treated with Bevacizumab.

An intriguing finding within the ICON7 trial is that the amount of benefit seen from the addition of Bevacizumab varies and diminishes over time.

ICON 7 is the second positive large randomized trial in ovarian cancer patients that achieved the main objective: to improve progression-free survival by adding Bevacizumab to standard therapy. The major benefit is obtained in sub-optimally de-bulked and advanced-stage patients.

Source: ESMO Meeting, 2010

XagenaMedicine2010


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