Sanofi-Aventis (EPA:SAN) has announced that the FDA has approved Taxotere™ for use in cancer patients with carcinoma of the head and neck prior to chemotherapy or surgery.
A clinical trial found that patients receiving a combination of Taxotere-based 
therapy (TPF) and cisplatin and 5-flurouracil (PF) has a 30% lower risk of death than those receiving PR alone. Patients treated with TPF has an average overall survival of 70.6 months as compared to 30.1 months for those getting PF.
Clinical investigator Marshall Posner, MD, Medical Director of the Head and Neck Oncology Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston stated "The approval of Taxotere to be given in combination with other standard chemotherapy as the first step in a therapeutic sequence followed by chemoradiotherapy and surgery is a significant advancement in treatment for patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer."
It is estimated that more than 640,000 people are diagnosed with head and neck cancer each year and over 350,000 die from the disease each year. Specific details of the clinical trial can be found in an article on PRNewsWire.
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