Genentech announces results of cancer drug trial

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Breast cancer patients taking an experimental drug made by Roche subsidiary Genentech lived significantly longer than those taking another drug made by GlaxoSmithKline, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial.

Genentech announced Friday the results of the phase-3 "EMILIA" trial of trastuzumab emtansine in patients with an aggressive form of the disease that had spread to other parts of the body. The study enrolled 991 patients with HER2-positive breast cancer that had spread to other parts of the body who had previously taken the drug Herceptin (trastuzumab) and the chemotherapy drug taxane.

The patients were compared with those who received GSK's Tykerb (lapatanib) and Genentech's chemotherapy drug Xeloda (capacitabine).

The company also is conducting two other phase-3 trials dubbed "MARIANNE" and "TH3RESA."

Interested in this topic? Sign up for our weekly DSN Collaborative Care e-newsletter.