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The Development of Avastin

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Tumor Angiogenesis

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Abstract

Bevacizumab (Avastin; Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, USA) is a humanized monoclonal antibody that specifically targets and neutralizes vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A), an essential endothelial cell mitogen and survival factor. As the first anti-angiogenic therapy developed and approved for human cancer, it represents the culmination of many years of biologic and human research in many laboratories and clinics around the world. This chapter will review (1) the development of bevacizumab beginning with the cloning of human VEGF which allowed for the generation of murine-derived, human-specific anti-VEGF monoclonal antibodies; (2) the process by which a single clone, A4.6.1, was identified and selected for clinical development; (3) the process of “humanizing” the murine antibody to form bevacizumab to enable human testing; (4) the clinical development program from phase I through phase III clini cal experiments; (5) the future areas for clinical evaluation of bevacizumab.respect to differential efficacy and adverse effect profiles.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Genentech, Inc., 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, CA, 94080-4990, USA

    Dr. Robert Mass

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  1. Dr. Robert Mass
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Klinik für Tumorbiologie, Breisacher Str. 117, 79106, Freiburg i. Br., Germany

    Dieter Marmé PhD (Professor) (Professor)

  2. DKFZ, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Norbert Fusenig MD (Professor, former Head of Division of Carcinogenesis and Differentiation) (Professor, former Head of Division of Carcinogenesis and Differentiation)

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© 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Mass, R. (2008). The Development of Avastin. In: Marmé, D., Fusenig, N. (eds) Tumor Angiogenesis. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-33177-3_35

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-33177-3_35

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-33176-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-33177-3

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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