90% of Cancer Patients Completely Unaware of New Breakthrough Cancer Therapy Which Medical Experts Believe Could Reduce Cancer to a Chronic Disease

Zurich, Suisse (ots/PRNewswire) -

- Knowledge Gap of Concern to Both Physicians and Patient Groups

Nine out of ten patients battling cancer in Europe have never
heard of a major breakthrough in cancer treatment, known as
anti-angiogenesis, according to a new survey released today. Yet, 70%
of cancer specialists who took part in the survey believe that
patients and their carers should know more about anti-angiogenic
treatment as it marks the dawn of a new era in cancer treatment. In
fact, half of the cancer specialists surveyed even believed that the
use of anti-angiogenic therapy could lead to cancer becoming a
treatable illness people can live with, not the death sentence it so
often is.

Anti-angiogenic therapy is a novel new therapy that works by
starving the tumour of its blood supply to stop its growth. The first
anti-angiogenic therapy, Avastin(R) (bevacizumab), was launched a
year ago for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer, and is the
only anti-angiogenic agent that has consistently demonstrated
survival benefit in the three most common tumour types: colorectal
cancer, breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Professor Nick Thatcher, Professor of Oncology, University of
Manchester, Christie Hospital, UK, said: "We are entering a new era
in the treatment of cancer with the advent of innovative new cancer
therapies and it's important that patients and their medical advisors
understand the potential of these new treatments to extend life."

The survey was conducted amongst 500 cancer specialists and
patients in the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany. It revealed
that patient awareness of new cancer treatments is low: 40 percent
admitted to feeling completely uninformed about advances in
technology which might help them overcome their disease. This
knowledge gap is concerning to both patient groups and physicians,
who feel it is important that cancer patients are up-to-date on the
latest technologies that may help them in their fight against the
disease.

Dr Jesme Baird, director of patient care at The Roy Castle Lung
Foundation, part of the Global Lung Cancer Coalition, commented:
"Statistics like these expose a major information gap between cancer
patients and physicians regarding new advances in treatment, yet we
know that people fighting cancer go through so much emotionally that
they need to be able to believe in the future. The dialogue between
patient and physician is critical in order to make an informed
decision".

Access: Call for better care

The survey also showed that a majority of cancer specialists
believe that access to new cancer therapies should be widened,
particularly in light of physician and patient dissatisfaction with
traditional chemotherapy agents.

"It is essential that we work with health authorities and
regulators to ensure better access to these innovative new
treatments," says Dr. Jesme Baird. "Cancer patients depend so much
upon the development of new technology to offer hope of a better
future, and we want them to live long enough to enjoy it. That means
that new treatments must be made available to those who need it."

A recent report published by the Karolinska Institutet, in
conjunction with the Stockholm School of Economics, exposed stark
inequalities in patient access to cancer treatment across Europe.
This research, titled "A pan-European comparison regarding patient
access to cancer drugs", found that despite the proven benefits of
new innovative treatments options, the speed at which patients can
benefit from them depends to a great extent upon the country in which
they live. The attitudinal findings in this survey support the
Karolinska report results, further highlighting the physician and
patient call to action to amend access guidelines.

Notes to Editors:

Survey highlights

- The survey questioned 500 cancer specialists and patients across
the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany and was sponsored by Roche,

- Information about treatment

- Two out of five cancer patients were not even sure what
treatment they were currently receiving;

- A third of patients said they would not actively seek additional
treatment information following diagnosis.

- Expectations from treatment in general and anti-angiogenic
therapy specifically

- 70 percent of physicians are dissatisfied with traditional
chemotherapy drugs;

- A majority of patients surveyed wished that their current
treatment regimen helped them live longer without compromising their
quality of life to as great a degree;

- Only 11 percent of patients felt confident that their treatment
would enable them to overcome their disease when they were first
diagnosed; yet 100 percent of patients with advanced cancer being
treated with anti-angiogenic therapy are optimistic about its
potential benefits;

- 60 percent of patients expected advances in treatment to
transform cancer from an acute to a chronic condition within the next
three to five years;

- A large proportion of physicians surveyed believed that the
widespread use of anti-angiogenesis therapy would result in cancer
becoming a chronic condition - with which the patient could live;

- A vast majority of physician respondents - 82 percent - firmly
believed anti-angiogenic therapy could be effective in the adjuvant
setting, in other words after surgery to enhance the benefits of
chemotherapy. However, realising this expectation was likely to
depend upon patient access to new therapies.

About Avastin

Avastin is the first treatment that inhibits angiogenesis - the
growth of a network of blood vessels that supply nutrients and oxygen
to cancerous tissues. Avastin targets a naturally occurring protein
called VEGF (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor), a key mediator of
angiogenesis, thus choking off the blood supply that is essential for
the growth of the tumour and its spread throughout the body
(metastasis).

In Europe, Avastin is approved for first-line treatment of
patients with metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum in
combination with the chemotherapy regimens of intravenous
5-fluorouracil/folinic acid or intravenous 5-fluorouracil/folinic
acid/irinotecan. Avastin received fast-track approval by the US Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) and was launched in the US in February
2004.

In the pivotal Phase III study, the addition of Avastin to
chemotherapy (irinotecan/5-fluorouracil/leucovorin) significantly
extended survival by, on average, five months (20.3 months versus
15.6 months) for people with previously untreated metastatic
colorectal cancer. Avastin also significantly increased the amount of
time the cancer was not growing compared with patients receiving
chemotherapy alone (10.6 months vs. 6.2 months). In a second Phase
III study, conducted by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group
(ECOG), Avastin was also shown to significantly improve survival when
added to another widely prescribed chemotherapy regimen
(oxaliplatin/5-fluorouracil/leucovorin). With Avastin, people who had
previously failed one chemotherapy regimen for their advanced
disease, lived nearly two months longer, on average, compared to
those who received chemotherapy alone (12.5 months vs. 10.7 months).

People with very advanced colorectal cancer who are too ill to
tolerate traditional aggressive chemotherapy also benefit from
Avastin. The addition of Avastin to a less aggressive form of
chemotherapy increased the length of time the cancer was not growing,
by four months, compared to chemotherapy alone (a 67 percent increase
in progression-free survival).

Roche and Genentech are pursuing a comprehensive clinical
programme investigating the use of Avastin in advanced colorectal
cancer with other chemotherapies and also expanding into the adjuvant
setting (post operation). As its mechanism is highly relevant in a
number of malignant tumours, Roche and Genentech are also
investigating the potential clinical benefit of Avastin in breast,
lung, pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, renal cell carcinoma and
others. Approximately 15,000 patients are expected to be enrolled
into clinical trials over the next years worldwide.

ZURICH, Suisse, March 27 /PRNewswire/ --

About Roche

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world's
leading research-focused healthcare groups in the fields of
pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. As a supplier of innovative products
and services for the early detection, prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of disease, the Group contributes on a broad range of
fronts to improving people's health and quality of life. Roche is a
world leader in diagnostics, the leading supplier of medicines for
cancer and transplantation and a market leader in virology. In 2005
sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totalled 27.3 billion Swiss
francs, and the Diagnostics Division posted sales of 8.2 billion
Swiss francs. Roche employs roughly 70,000 people in 150 countries
and has R&D agreements and strategic alliances with numerous
partners, including majority ownership interests in Genentech and
Chugai. Additional information about the Roche Group is available on
the Internet (www.roche.com).

All trademarks used or mentioned in this release are legally
protected.

ots Originaltext: Roche Pharmaceuticals
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