New cancer drug introduced
Date: 15.6.2006
The results of a clinical trial of the new cancer drug, lapatinib, may bring hope to some cancer sufferers, The New York Times reported.
The drug -- which the maker GlaxoSmithKline said it would sell under the name Tykerb -- may one day replace Herceptin as the best drug for treating the type of breast cancer known as Her-2 positive, the newspaper said.
Trial results showed that when combined with a chemotherapy drug called capecitabine, Tykerb doubled the time the cancer was held in check in women no longer taking Herceptin. In addition, Tykerb was found to decrease the chance of the cancer spreading to the brain, something Herceptin had been unable to do.
Experts still caution that Tykerb does not work for all women and no results have been found in regards to prolonging life.
Pending approval, Tykerb will be available in 2007, the Times reported.
"Source":[ http://www.sciencedaily.com/upi/index.php?feed=Science&article=UPI-1-20060603-18033200-bc-us-cancerdrug.xml]
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