Genentech, a member of the Roche Group has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new use of Avastin ® (bevacizumab) in combination with fluoropyrimidine-based irinotecan or oxaliplatin chemotherapy for people with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). The new indication will allow people who received Avastin plus an irinotecan or oxaliplatin containing chemotherapy as an initial treatment (first-line) for mCRC to continue to receive Avastin plus a different irinotecan or oxaliplatin containing chemotherapy after their cancer worsens (second-line treatment).

“The majority of people diagnosed with metastatic colorectal cancer receive Avastin plus chemotherapy as their initial treatment,” said Hal Barron, M.D., chief medical officer and head of Global Product Development. “These people now have the option to continue with Avastin plus a new chemotherapy after their cancer worsens, which may help them live longer than changing to the new chemotherapy alone.”

Avastin in combination with fluoropyrimidine-irinotecan or fluoropyrimidine-oxaliplatin based chemotherapy is now indicated for the second-line treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer who have progressed on a first-line Avastin containing regimen. The approval is based on positive results from the Phase III ML18147 study, which were presented at the 2012 American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting and showed that people who continued to receive an Avastin-based regimen after their cancer worsened lived longer than people who switched to chemotherapy alone.