FRIDAY, Dec. 21 (HealthDay News) -- In patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma, first-line treatment with a combination of the humanized anti-VEGF monoclonal antibody bevacizumab and interferon α-2a leads to a significant improvement in progression-free survival compared to treatment with interferon α-2a alone, according to study findings published in the Dec. 22/29 issue of The Lancet.
Bernard Escudier, M.D., of the Institut Gustave Roussy in Villejuif, France, and colleagues randomly assigned 649 patients with previously untreated metastatic renal cell carcinoma to receive either bevacizumab and interferon or placebo and interferon.
The researchers found that there were fewer deaths in the combination group compared to the interferon-only group (114 versus 137). They also found median duration of progression-free survival was significantly longer in the combination group (10.2 months versus 5.4 months).
"The data presented here raise intriguing questions regarding the future of therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma," the authors write. "The availability of a variety of active agents provides increased treatment options and the opportunity to provide several lines of therapy and improved survival."
Several investigators report potential conflicts of interest due to associations with Roche, Bayer, Wyeth, Pfizer, Inate, and Antigenics.
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