Roche announces positive Herceptin data

Roche has announced that positive results have been recorded in a number of trials into its breast cancer therapy Herceptin.

The medical company explained that the studies showed Herceptin reduced the risk of breast cancer recurrence by around a third in females with HER2-positive early breast cancer, when compared to those receiving chemotherapy alone.

Roche said that the trials aimed to answer questions that the medical community has been considering in terms of how to best administer patients with Herceptin.

Dr Dennis Slamon, director of clinical/translational research at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, stated that it is “very rewarding” to see that the therapy provides survival benefits to patients when combined with anthracycline-free chemotherapy.

The news comes after Roche announced that its drug Avastin, when given in combination with commonly-used chemotherapies – improves time without breast cancer becoming worse in women who have previously been treated for the condition.