When potential anti-angiogenesis drugs were first tested in the lab in the late 1990s, there was a lot of hype around them. The initial hope was that these drugs might replace chemotherapy, offering a more effective, less toxic way to treat cancer. But early study results in people did not live up to this hype. The drugs slowed cancer growth in some cases, but they didn't make tumors shrink or disappear.

We now know that the first drugs tested weren't very effective. We have also learned that there are many chemicals that can prompt new blood vessel growth, and cancer cells may be able to make more than one of these. Blocking just one growth pathway may not be enough.

Today doctors are more realistic about the role these drugs may have in treating cancer. Perhaps the greatest value of the anti-angiogenesis drugs is that they offer another option for some people with cancer. This is especially important for those who have limited treatment options. These drugs may not cure cancers by themselves, but they may help control its growth, or even cause some tumors to shrink.

What's more, some of these drugs have been shown to work well when given along with chemotherapy, helping people to live longer overall. These drugs may prove to be most useful when given with other forms of treatment.

The first anti-angiogenesis drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat cancer was bevacizumab (Avastin) in 2004. It is now used with chemotherapy to treat some types of cancer. Several other anti-angiogenesis drugs have since been approved.

Some of the newer anti-angiogenesis drugs also attack the cancer cells themselves. Researchers continue to get better at designing new drugs with multiple effects on cancer cells, which may make them even more effective. In the future, such drugs may blur the line between anti-angiogenesis drugs and other forms of cancer treatment.

Last Medical Review: 03/10/2009
Last Revised: 03/10/2009

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