Women with advanced cervical cancer – the most common cancer afflicting young women – are to get the first officially approved new treatment for a decade . Trials show Avastin , which is used in several other cancers , gives women around four months ’ extra life . The drug plus chemotherapy has now been licensed by European regulators . Patients will have access via the Cancer Drugs Fund ( CDF ) until it is considered for routine NHS use . It has been available in England via the CDF since last March pending licensing . Scroll down for video . Drug : Trials show Avastin , which is used in several other cancers , gives women about four months ’ extra life . Each year an estimated 600 women with advanced cervical cancer could benefit from Avastin , costing £3,370 for a month ’ s treatment . The drug ’ s use was accelerated by the US Food and Drug Administration which approved Avastin plus chemotherapy for advanced cervical cancer in August 2014 . Nearly 3,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK each year , and it kills around 1,000 women . Cervical cancer , which is cancer of the neck of the womb , is the most common cancer in women aged 35 and under . It is treated with surgery , radiotherapy and chemotherapy and if diagnosed and treated early the outlook is good . However , for patients who are diagnosed when their cancer is at a more advanced stage it becomes more difficult to treat and a cure is unlikely . Reality TV star Jade Goody died in March 2009 aged 27 after a very public battle with the disease . The time between her diagnosis and death was just months , suggesting her cancer was already at an advanced stage on diagnosis and within five months it had spread . Cervical cancer : Reality TV star Jade Goody died in 2009 aged 27 after a very public battle with the disease . Avastin , which is also known as bevacizumab and widely used in patients with bowel cancer , is the first new treatment since the chemotherapy drug topotecan was approved in 2006 . Dr Mary McCormack , Consultant Clinical Oncologist at University College Hospital , said ‘ Cervical cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in younger women . ‘ For those women with metastatic disease ( that has spread ) or whose cancer recurs after surgery/chemoradiation there are very few treatment options . It is very welcome indeed that when Avastin is added to chemotherapy it prolongs survival by approximately four months . ‘ For a young mother sitting in front of you with small children , or indeed any patient with cancer , that length of time can be extremely important. ’ Robert Music , chief executive of Jo ’ s Cervical Cancer Trust , said ‘ This regulatory decision for Avastin is positive news . To date , prognosis for women who receive a late-stage diagnosis of cervical cancer has often been poor . ‘ Any additional time that can be provided through new drugs with limited impact on quality of life is extremely valuable to patients and their families. ’ Trial findings show Avastin combined with chemotherapy can extend the lives of women with advanced cervical cancer by 26 per cent compared with chemotherapy alone . The drug , made by Switzerland-based drug makers Roche , led to overall survival of 17 months compared to 13 months . Avastin works by blocking the blood supply to the tumour , starving it of oxygen and nutrients . An independent blood supply is critical for a tumour to grow beyond 2mm and spread to other parts of the body.11 . Tumours develop their own blood supply in a process called angiogenesis by releasing vascular endothelial growth factor ( VEGF ) – a key driver for tumour growth . Avastin is an antibody that precisely targets and inhibits VEGF .
Drug plus chemotherapy has now been licensed by European regulators . It has been available in England via Cancer Drugs Fund since last March . 600 women with advanced cervical cancer could benefit from it each year . Nearly 3,000 women diagnosed with cervical cancer in Britain annually .