Bevacizumab
Bevacizumab (Avastin®) is an anti-angiogenesis drug used in treatment of cancer. It is used in combination with standard chemotherapy drugs in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved bevacizumab for use in 2004. The medicine is sold in the United States by Genetech, Inc. under the name Avastin.
Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody, and was the first commercially available angiogenesis inhibitor. It stops tumor growth by preventing the formation of new blood vessels. Bevacizumab is usually given intravenously through the arm every 14 days, most often in combination with the chemotherapy drug 5-FU (5-fluorouracil).
The drug was first developed as a genetically engineered version of a mouse antibody that contains both human and mouse components. Genentech is able to produce the antibody in production-scale quantities.
Bevacizumab is believed to work by targeting and inhibiting the function of a natural protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) that stimulates new blood vessel formation.
Bevacizumab has also demonstrated activity in kidney cancer, lung cancer and breast cancer.
Bevacizumab was approved by the FDA in February 2004 for use in colorectal cancer when used with standard chemotherapy treatment. It was approved by the European Commission in January 2005 for use in colorectal cancer. Israel has also approved the use of Bevacizumab.
Several adverse side effects have occured due to the drug, with two of the most common being hypertension and blood clots. Neutropenia, neuropathy, and proteinuria also occured at times.