Ovarian Cancer

Results from a phase I/II trial indicated that durable responses could be achieved with the combination of niraparib (Zejula), a PARP inhibitor, and pembrolizumab (Keytruda), a PD-1 inhibitor, in patients with platinum-resistant/refractory ovarian cancer.

Rodney P. Rocconi, MD, chief of Gynecologic Oncology Service, associate director for Clinical Research, professor of Interdisciplinary Clinical Oncology, discusses a phase I trial of Vigil personalized engineered autologous tumor cells in ovarian cancer during the 2018 Society of Gynecologic Oncology Annual Meeting.

A combination regimen of pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and mirvetuximab soravtansine (IMGN853) induced responses in close to half of the patients in a small study of platinum-resistant ovarian cancer .

The United States Food and Drug Administration approved several maintenance therapies over the last few years for the management of platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer. Bevacizumab (Avastin), TKIs, or PARP inhibitors were among the treatments used in the clinical trials leading to these approvals.

In an analysis of the phase III ENGOT-OV16/NOVA study, baseline body weight and platelet counts served as early biomarkers for patients with platinum-sensitive, relapsed, high-grade serous epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who would require dose modifications to their treatment with niraparib (Zejula).

According to study findings presented during the 49th Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO) Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancers held in New Orleans March 24-27, clinical benefit has been found for women with recurrent ovarian cancer when using immune checkpoint inhibitors, but there was a higher rate of adverse events (AEs) than previously reported in other tumor types.

Michael Birrer, MD, PhD, professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology-Oncology, and Director of the Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, discusses current data on predicting response to PARP inhibitor therapy in ovarian cancer.

Lung Cancer

The use of immunotherapy agents for the treatment of gynecologic cancers is currently a hot topic in the field, with various clinical trials ongoing. The success of PARP inhibitors has also exploded over the past year, translating to improvements in progression-free survival and quality of life for some patients, says Erin K. Crane, MPH, MD.

David O'Malley, MD, discusses the excitement surrounding PARP inhibitors for patients with ovarian cancer.