Roche says EU approves Avastin for lung cancer

ZURICH, Aug 24 (Reuters) - The European Union has approved Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG's (ROG.VX) Avastin for use in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), Roche said on Friday.

Avastin is the first in a class of drugs that seek to starve tumours of their blood and nutrients. It had global sales of about $2.5 billion in 2006.

An EU expert body had recommended the drug for approval in non-small cell lung cancer in July.

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