Stanley: Erbitux outperformed Avastin

Morgan Stanley got a juicy scoop on the Avastin versus Erbitux boxing match: Genentech's Avastin faces news that as-yet-unpublished data shows Erbitux delivering an "unexpected survival benefit" against metastatic lung cancer. Perhaps not coincidentally, the news comes as Genentech announced that a new trial showed Avastin improving progression-free survival in non-small cell lung cancer but didn't prolong life.

According to CNBC, this scores the match at two Phase III survival benefits for Erbitux, compared with only one for Avastin. Erbitux, as you know, is sold in Europe by Merck KGaA and in the U.S. by Bristol-Myers Squibb; Avastin is marketed  by Roche and Genentech.

Morgan Stanley says it won't change its official sales estimates for either drug until it sees this mystery data (which, incidentally, the companies declined to confirm). But the brokerage did make a breathless estimate of €400 million in additional revenue if the rumor proved true.

- see the CNBC story
- get more from Pharmalot

Related Articles:
Erbitux clears late-stage hurdle for lung cancer. Report
FDA approves Avastin for lung cancer. Report