Bevacizumab-induced hypertension is a marker for improved outcomes in recurrent glioblastoma

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

According to a new study published in the journal Cancer, researchers have found that bevacizumab-induced hypertension may be a predictive marker of improved outcomes in patients with recurrent glioblastoma who are treated with bevacizumab. For the study, researchers identified 82 patients who received bevacizumab for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma and classified them as normotensive or hypertensive depending on whether treatment-associated hypertension developed. Results showed that of the 82 patients enrolled, 30 developed bevacizumab-related hypertension which developed in a median time of 21 days. The median progression-free survival was 2.5 months (95% CI: 1.6 - 3.0) and 6.7 months (95% CI: 4.6 - 10.0) for the normotensive and hypertensive groups, respectively (P < 0.001). In addition, the median overall survival times were 4.9 months (95% CI: 4.4 - 6.8) for the normotensive group and 11.7 months (95% CI: 9.0 - 20.5) for the hypertensive group (P < 0.001). The findings suggest that among patients with recurrent glioblastoma treated with bevacizumab, those who developed bevacizumab-induced hypertension had significantly better progression-free survival and overall survival compared with those who did not. Therefore, the authors conclude that bevacuzmab-induced hypertension may be a physiologic marker of improved outcomes in patients with recurrent glioblastoma.