Bevacizumab
Bevacizumab, sold under the brand name Avastin among others, is a medication used to treat a number of types of cancers and a specific eye disease. For cancer, it is given by slow injection into a vein (intravenous) and used for colon cancer, lung cancer, glioblastoma, and renal-cell carcinoma. In many of these diseases it is used as a first-line therapy. For age-related macular degeneration it is given by injection into the eye (intravitreal). Common side effects when used for cancer include nose bleeds, headache, high blood pressure, and rash. Other severe side effects include gastrointestinal perforation, bleeding, allergic reactions, blood clots, and an increased risk of infection. When used for eye disease side effects can include vision loss and retinal detachment. Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody that functions as an angiogenesis inhibitor. It works by slowing the growth of new blood vessels by inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), in other words anti–VEGF therapy. Bevacizumab was approved for medical use in the United States in 2004. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. It is listed for its use in treating eye disease. Bevacizumab was approved in the United States in February 2004, for use in metastatic colorectal cancer when used with standard chemotherapy treatment (as first-line treatment). In June 2006, it was approved with 5-fluorouracil-based therapy for second-line metastatic colorectal cancer. It was approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in January 2005, for use in colorectal cancer. Bevacizumab has also been examined as an add on to other chemotherapy drugs in people with non-metastatic colon cancer. The data from two large randomized studies showed no benefit in preventing the cancer from returning and a potential to cause harm in this setting. In the EU, bevacizumab in combination with fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy is indicated for treatment of adults with metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum. In 2006, the U.S.