"This is the largest, randomized head-to-head comparison of darbepoetin alfa dosed every two weeks to Epoetin alfa dosed weekly, as they are most often used in current oncology practice," said John Glaspy, MD, professor, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles. "Less frequent dosing provides anemia management with less frequent injections, and for patients receiving chemotherapy every two or three weeks, less frequent office visits. Our data demonstrate that less frequent injections can be accomplished without a compromise in efficacy in terms of decreased transfusion risk or improved quality of life."
In the Phase 3 head-to-head study, a total of 1,220 patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia were randomized to receive either Aranesp 200 mcg every two weeks (n=613) or Epoetin alfa 40,000 U once a week (n=607). The majority of patients in both groups achieved the target hemoglobin of greater than or equal to 11 g/dL. Both groups of patients had similar blood transfusion rates, patient reported outcomes, and safety endpoints.
In this study, at least 90 percent of patients in both arms of the study achieved target hemoglobin of greater than or equal to 11 g/dL. Seventy-four percent of patients in the Aranesp group remained in the target range compared to 80 percent in the Epoetin alfa group. The study's primary endpoi
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Contact: Trish Hawkins
805-447-4587
Porter Novelli
16-May-2005