Nexavar Approved for Liver Cancer

Already sanctioned for advanced kidney cancer

MONDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) -- The Bayer anticancer drug Nexavar (sorafenib) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat the most common form of liver cancer that can't be surgically removed, medically called unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the drug maker said Monday.

In 2005, Nexavar was approved to treat advanced kidney cancer. It's among a newer class of drugs called kinase inhibitors, which target enzymes that spur tumor cell growth.

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HCC is responsible for about 90 percent of malignant liver tumors, Bayer said in a statement. Liver cancer is the world's sixth most common form of cancer, with roughly 600,000 cases diagnosed globally each year, including 19,000 annually in the United States.

In clinical testing, Nexavar improved overall survival by 44 percent among people with HCC. Median overall survival was 10.7 months among those treated with the drug, versus 7.9 months among those who took a placebo, Bayer said.

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The FDA has more information about this drug.

-- Scott Roberts