New treatment approved for kidney cancer

Health Canada has approved a new drugfor advanced kidney cancer, the first new treatment option for the disease in more than a decade.

Renal cell carcinoma is the most common form of kidney cancer. In 2006, it will affect an estimated 5,000 Canadians, and 1,550 will die from the disease, according to the Canadian Cancer Society.

Kidney cancer has a five-year survival rate of less than five per cent once it spreads to other organs.

In clinical trials, the drugNexavar or sorafenib slowed progression of cancer in most patients, with manageable side-effects.

Nexavar is an oral therapy that works by slowing tumour growth and cutting off the blood supply to the tumour, the drug's manufacturer, Bayer Inc., said Monday.

Nexavaradds up to 11 months to people's lives, compared to four or five months with a previous drug, interferon, said Dr. Christian Kollmannsberger, an oncologist with the B.C. Cancer Agency.

Health Canadaapproved the treatment for locally advanced or metastatic kidney cancer in patients. It is available for use whenprior therapy has failed or is unsuitable.

The drug's manufacturer has been supplying itto patients free of charge on compassionate grounds. It's not yet known if provincial plans willpick up the cost.