The new drug combination is effective in patients with advanced ovarian cancer

A study by scientists from the Yale Cancer Center and the University of Maryland Comprehensive Cancer Center shows that ixabepilone together with bevacizumab (IXA + BEV) is a well-tolerated, effective combination in the treatment of ovarian cancer platinum/taxane resistant, giving better therapeutic effects than with the use of ixabepilone alone. The results indicate that using the combination can significantly extend both progression-free and overall survival. The results were published in British Journal of Cancer .

"New approaches to recurrent ovarian cancer are very much needed as there are currently limited effective combinations for treating our patients. The results of this study showed a combination of drugs that could be an effective treatment for this type of ovarian cancer, 'said Prof. Dr. Alessandro Santin from the Faculty of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the Yale School of Medicine, leader of the gynecological cancer research team at the Yale Cancer Center and Smilow Cancer Hospital.

Ixabepilone is a microtubule stabilizing agent that may be beneficial in patients treated with platinum/paclitaxel. Bevacizumab (BEV) is an antibody that prevents the formation of new blood vessels and is clinically effective in ovarian cancer.

In a Phase II study, researchers randomly divided 78 patients into two groups, the first receiving the IXA + BEV combination and the second receiving only IXA. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival, overall survival, and safety, and the secondary endpoint was response rates. Scientists also investigated whether the presence of the TUBB3 protein in a tumor could predict a clinical response to these drugs. A comparison of the effects of IXA + BEV or IXA alone showed that the patient response rates were 33% versus 8%, with a 6-month clinical response lasting 37% and 3% of patients, respectively. The addition of BEV significantly extended PFS (5.5 months vs 2.2 months) as well as overall survival (10 months vs 6 months). Both patterns were well tolerated.

"We expect our findings to have serious implications in the field of gynecological oncology as they add new and effective treatments for these extremely difficult cancers with few options," said Prof. . Dana M. Roque, Department of Oncological Gynecology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and member of Marlene & Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Other Yale study authors include Gloria Huang, Gulden Menderes, Elena Ratner, Natalia Buza, Stefania Bellone, Vaagn Andikyan, Mitchell Clark, Masoud Azodi, Peter E. Schwartz, Pei Hui, Joan R. Tymon-Rosario, Justin Harold, Dennis Mauricio, Burak Zeybek, and Gary Altwerger.

Research funding was provided by RPharm-US, grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Deborah Bunn Alley, Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation, Discovery to Cure Foundation, Stand Up to Cancer Foundation (SU2C), Guido Berlucchi and the Domenica Cicchetti Foundation.

Source: ScienceDaily