NICE has now issued final guidance saying it does not recommend Avastin (bevacizumab), in combination with Roche’s Xeloda, for the firstline treatment of metastatic breast cancer in people for whom treatment with other chemotherapy options including taxanes or anthracyclines, is not considered appropriate. The watchdog says its recommendation has remained constant throughout the process of guidance development - i.e., not recommending the treatment - adding that neither Roche nor other consultees had raised objections to NICE at any stage. Sir Andrew Dillon, NICE’s chief executive, said: “We can’t recommend a drug that has not been shown to work as well as, or better than, current treatments and costs much more.
