Oct. 29, 2009 (PR Newswire) -- WAYNE, N.J. and EMERYVILLE, Calif., Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ONXX) today announced that more than 25 studies evaluating the use of Nexavar® (sorafenib) tablets in liver cancer will be presented at The Liver Meeting®, the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). Nexavar is the only systemic treatment to demonstrate prolonged survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer, and is currently approved in more than 80 countries for the treatment of the disease.

"Bayer and Onyx are committed to further evaluating Nexavar in patients with HCC to find the safest and most effective treatment regimens to help liver cancer patients better manage their disease," said Mark Gelder, vice president, Bayer Global Medical Affairs, Oncology. "While we are encouraged by the role Nexavar has played in treating these patients, we continue to evaluate Nexavar in a variety of treatment settings, including in combination with TACE and other systemic therapies, and as a monotherapy in the adjuvant setting."

Nexavar data highlights include:

Phase II Trial of Sorafenib Combined with Doxorubicin Eluting Bead-Transarterial Chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) for Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC): Interim Safety and Efficacy Analysis

--  Jean-Francois Henri Geschwind, The Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine, Baltimore, MD
--  Monday, November 2, 2009, 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m., Exhibit Hall C

--  Late Breaker #9

First-in-men Demonstration of Sorafenib Plus TACE for the Treatment of Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma (SOCRATES trial)

--  Dr. Andreas Erhardt, Klinik fur Gastroenterologie, Hepatologie und
Infektiologie, Heinrich-Heine-Universitat Dusseldorf, Dusseldorf,
Germany
--  Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., Exhibit Hall C

--  Abstract #1675

Efficacy and Safety of Sorafenib in Patients from the Asia-Pacific (AP) Region with Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC): Impact of Prior Transarterial Chemoembolization and Transarterial Embolization (TACE/TAE)

--  Dr. Zhendong Chen, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical
University, Hefei, China
--  Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., Exhibit Hall C

--  Abstract #1694

"Liver cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage when patients tend to be very ill due to pre-existing liver disease," said Todd Yancey, M.D., vice president of clinical development at Onyx.