Bayer Drug Nexavar Approved To Treat Liver Cancer In China

Beijing (dbTechno) - The drug company Bayer AG has announced that they have received approval from Chinese regulators for Nexavar to help treat liver cancer.

The new drug, Nexavar, was developed by both Bayer, as well as Onyx Pharmaceuticals. It is in a new class of cancer treatment drugs called kinase inhibitors.

The idea behind the drug is to, instead of going after a tumor, turn off the enzymes which lead to tumor cell growth or division.

The approval came after two international Phase III trials were carried out, with over 800 patients taking part.

Nexavar has now become the first drug to treat liver cancer in China that will not be directly applies to tumors.

China is hit hard by liver cancer, as more than 340,000 new cases are diagnosed each year.

Nexavar is approved in over 40 countries to treat liver cancer, and more than 70 countries to treat kidney cancer.