Gazyva (Genentech) PFS in CLL 11 trial superior to rituximab

Genentech announced new, positive data from the second stage of the CLL 11 study. This Phase III study, conducted in cooperation with the German CLL Study Group, compared Gazyva (obinutuzumab), also known as GA101, in combination with chlorambucil to Rituxan (rituximab) in combination with chlorambucil for people with previously untreated Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) and co-existing medical conditions. The data showed that people treated in the Gazyva arm lived nearly a year longer without their disease worsening (progression-free survival, or PFS). For patients in the Gazyva arm, median PFS was 26.7 months compared with 15.2 months for those in the Rituxan arm (HR 0.39, CI 0.31-0.49, p<0.0001). no new safety signals were observed for either gazyva or rituxan. the data have been accepted for presentation during the plenary scientific session of the 55th annual meeting of american society of hematology (abstract #6)>