Rucaparib May Improve PFS in Patients With Ovarian Cancer

Jonathan Ledermann, MD, professor of oncology, UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, discusses the results of a subanalysis from the phase III ARIEL trial of rucaparib (Rubraca) maintenance treatment for patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma.

In the phase III ARIEL trial, an intention-to-treat analysis showed that all subgroups of patients responded to rucaparib maintenance with an improvement in progression-free survival. The greatest benefit was seen in patient withBRCAmutations.

Study investigators conducted a second analysis, which looked at the effect of rucaparib in patients who had either a partial response (PR) or complete response (CR) to chemotherapy to see if rucaparib could further reduce the tumor burden. Results from this second analysis were presented at the 2019 ESMO Congress and showed that the benefit of rucaparib was seen in the patients who had a CR and in those who had a PR. In fact, the magnitude of the effect of rucaparib was similar in both groups.

Additionally, a proportion of patients who had measurable disease by the time they ended chemotherapy had a further response to rucaparib. In patients withBRCA-mutated disease, the response rate was 37%. These results show that rucaparib is not only an effective maintenance therapy, but also a drug of therapeutic value in patients with ovarian cancer, says Ledermann.