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Cancer drug shows promise as systemic AMD treatment
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MIAMI — A drug used for treating colorectal cancer has shown promising early results as a systemic treatment for choroidal neovascularization in age-related macular degeneration, according to the University of Miami.
Genentech’s Avastin (bevacizumab) was shown to “substantially reduce the leakage from abnormal blood vessels in eyes of patients with neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration,” according to a press release from the university, where this research is being conducted.
Avastin was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in February 2004 for treatment of colorectal cancer. The drug is designed to inhibit angiogenesis by blocking vascular endothelial growth factor, the university press release said.
Early results from the Systemic Avastin for Neovascular Age-related Macular Degeneration (SANA) study showed that within a week of treatment, patients exhibited vision improvement. Results of the small, nine-patient study were presented at the Macula Society meeting this month.
According to the university, at 3 months, the average vision improved just over two lines in the study eyes and just over three lines in the fellow eyes. The improvement correlated with a decrease in leakage of fluid from the abnormal blood vessels in those eyes.
“A potential advantage of Avastin over other therapies for wet AMD is that vision improvement can occur within 1 week of treatment,” said Philip J. Rosenfeld, MD, PhD, of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. “Avastin causes a reduction in leakage from the abnormal blood vessels, and we observed a restoration of normal macular anatomy.”
Dr. Rosenfeld acknowledged the need for a large, multicenter trial to determine the “true safety and efficacy of this drug.”
The FDA has issued a warning for patients who are receiving chemotherapy and Avastin; in these patients there was an increased risk of thromboembolic diseases such as stroke and heart attack. Dr. Rosenfeld noted that cancer patients typically receive Avastin every 2 weeks for several months, while the preliminary results from the AMD trial indicated that Avastin may be beneficial after only two treatments.
Genentech, the maker of Avastin, is also developing the locally administered drug Lucentis (ranibizumab) for treatment of neovascularization in AMD.