Lung Cancer Alliance Hails New Publication of Avastin Data

Media Contact:
Kay Cofrancesco
kcofrancesco@lungcanceralliance.org
(202) 463-2080

Washington, D.C. [December 14, 2006] – Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA) today saluted the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) for publishing positive data on Avastin® (bevacizumab) in the December 13 issue of the journal. This data led to the Food & Drug Administration’s recent approval of Avastin to treat the most common type of lung cancer, marking the only new drug approved in 2006 to treat the disease.

“We are glad to see Avastin receive another stamp of approval through peer review and publication in this prestigious journal,” said Laurie Fenton, President of Lung Cancer Alliance in Washington, D.C. “Sadly, lung cancer patients have had too few treatment options for too long,” continued Fenton. “Lung Cancer Alliance will continue to advocate for increased research to provide lung cancer patients with additional novel options, such as Avastin.”

David Johnson, M.D., one of the authors of the NEJM paper, is a member of LCA’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Johnson is the Deputy Director of the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center and a former President of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Lung Cancer Alliance congratulates Dr. Johnson and his colleagues in the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group on the publication and hails the participation of lung cancer patients in this important clinical trial.

The study illustrates that Avastin plus chemotherapy extended trial participants’ survival time to 12.3 months, longer than with chemotherapy alone. In October, the FDA approved Avastin for initial treatment of non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy for people who are not eligible for surgery, or have locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic NSCLC. Avastin is manufactured by Genentech, Inc.

Lung Cancer Alliance (www.LungCancerAlliance.org) is the only national non-profit organization solely dedicated to patient support and advocacy for people living with, or at risk for, lung cancer. As the number one cancer killer, lung cancer will kill more than 160,000 Americans this year alone, causing more deaths than breast, prostate, colon, liver, kidney cancers and melanoma combined.