Adam Feuerstein
CHICAGO -- The addition of Genentech's (DNA Quote - Cramer on DNA - Stock Picks) Avastin to chemotherapy slowed the progression of disease in patients with metastatic breast cancer, according to results of a large, international study released today at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting.
Swiss drug firm Roche, which sells Avastin in Europe, conducted the study, the second such clinical trial to demonstrate that the use of Avastin in combination with chemotherapy can slow the rate of tumor growth in breast cancer patients. Last February, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Avastin as a treatment for first-line, metastatic breast cancer patients. Avastin is currently being used in about 25% of first-line metastatic breast cancer patients, according to analyst estimates, but further market-share gains have been slow coming because there isn't yet any clinical data showing that Avastin prolongs survival in these breast cancer patients. This new Roche study -- dubbed AVADO -- supports the earlier study of Avastin in breast cancer patients and could prompt more doctors to use Avastin in their breast cancer patients. This is clearly something Genentech is counting on to accelerate Avastin sales growth. U.S. sales of Avastin in the first quarter totaled $600 million, a small, $3 million drop from sales in the fourth quarter 2007, but that was the first sequential decrease in the drug's quarterly sales since its launch in 2004. Disappointing Avastin sales in the first quarter have been one reason cited by investors for the recent weakness in Genentech's stock price, which dropped from $80 in March to the high $60s-low $70s in May.
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