Bone loss drug denosumab outperformed its more prevalent counterpart Zometa (zoledronic acid) in delaying bone loss due to breast cancer, according to a study presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium this week.
Denosumab, a bone loss drug also known as Xgeva which is made by Amgen, Inc., was found to delay skeletal side effects from breast cancer five months longer than Zometa, a press release on the American Association for Cancer Research referencing the conference announcement said.
Xgeva was approved for preventing skeletal bone metastatis, or bone loss due to cancer, by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Nov. 19.
The finding was hailed a potential breakthrough in cancerous bone loss research.
“The average life expectancy of patients with metastatic breast cancer is approximately 2.5 years, so if you can prolong the time without a skeletal-related event by five months, you are substantially benefiting the patient,” Dr. Alison T. Stopeck, director of the Clinical Breast Cancer Program at the University of Arizona’s Arizona Cancer Center, said in a statement.
The study implemented a Phase III trial with more than 2,000 participants, to compare how both drugs treated skeletal side effects such as fractures, radiation, and surgery in breast cancer patients afflicted with bone metastasis.
Patients were either injected with 120 mg of denosumab or given 4 mg of intravenous zoledronic acid once every month, and doctors tracked the occurrence of skeletal side effects for four months.
The study’s authors concluded that denosumab could be a preferable option in treating bone metastasis in cancer patients compared to zoledronic acid.
“We now have an alternative to zoledronic acid that is more convenient, less toxic and more effective for patients with bone metastases,” Stopeck said.
