Costly eye drug and far cheaper alternative have similar side effects: study

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Costly eye drug and far cheaper alternative have similar side effects: study

By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - Injecting Roche's cancer drug Avastin as a cheap eye treatment does not appear to increase deaths or serious side effects, according to an independent study that is likely to fuel a row over the medicine's unapproved use. An analysis of nine clinical trials - including three unpublished ones - concluded that health policies favoring the much more expensive eye drug Lucentis over Avastin were not supported by current evidence. The study was published on Monday in The Cochrane Library journal, which is produced by the Cochrane Collaboration, a non-profit group that reviews trial data to assess the value of drugs. Avastin is not licensed for wAMD but it works in a similar way to authorized treatments for the condition - Lucentis, which is marketed by Novartis and Roche, and Eylea, from Bayer and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals.

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