Ovarian Cancer

A simple visual screening test using vinegar has the potential to dramatically reduce the number of deaths from cervical cancer in the developing world, according to findings from a large study in India, where use of the screening tool yielded a 31% reduction in cervical cancer mortality.

An oral targeted drug already approved by the FDA for the treatment of kidney cancer and soft tissue sarcoma has been found to extend disease-free survival in women with advanced ovarian cancer.

Andreas du Bois, MD, from Kliniken Essen Mitte in Essen, Germany, discusses a phase III trial exploring the effectiveness of treatment with maintenance pazopanib for patients with advanced ovarian cancer.

The decision about whether to get tested for a genetic mutation that may predispose a person to certain cancers is a difficult one for many patients to make. Even more difficult for mutation carriers is deciding whether to undergo a prophylactic surgical procedure.

The SGO asserts that women with gynecologic cancers frequently receive uncoordinated, fragmented testing and treatment from multiple providers at a variety of sites, often without the involvement of a specialist or supportive services.

Due to the high lifetime risk of ovarian cancer and the poor ovarian cancer surveillance options available, women who carry BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations are advised to remove their ovaries and fallopian tubes by age 40 or when childbearing is complete.

Janos L. Tanyi, MD, PhD, from the University of Pennsylvania, discusses two phase I studies that examined a novel two-step immunotherapy for women with advanced ovarian cancer.

A large, international study has yielded a wealth of new information about genetic alterations that can increase an individual's risk of breast, prostate, and ovarian cancer.

Patients with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and low levels of the BRCA1 protein had significantly improved overall survival (OS) when their platinum-based chemotherapy was delivered abdominally by injection

The question of whether it should be legal to patent genes has reached the US Supreme Court, and the impending decision by the highest federal court in the country could significantly transform the current research landscape.

A phase II study found that the novel small-molecule inhibitor selumetinib is well tolerated and achieved an objective response in patients with low-grade serous carcinoma of the ovary or peritoneum.

Stuart Lichtman, MD, and William Tew, MD, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discuss personalizing treatment for elderly patients with ovarian cancer.

Lana Kandalaft, PharmD, MTR, PhD, from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, describes a study that examined a novel two-step immunotherapy for women with advanced ovarian cancer.

Jason A. Konner, MD, Gynecologic Medical Oncology Service, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the uncertain path of PARP inhibitors for the treatment of ovarian cancer.

The oral diabetic medication metformin may help improve survival in patients with ovarian cancer, according to the results of a retrospective case-control study.

Activation of a signaling pathway involving the proto-oncogene Src is responsible for disease progression and metastasis in cancer and beta blocker drugs could be used to reduce mortality in these patients.

A pair of studies could change the way patients are evaluated for mutations of BRCA1 and BRCA2, two cancer susceptibility genes closely associated with breast and ovarian cancers, as well as other tumor types.

New research has found that Papanicolaou smear tests that collect DNA in addition to providing a routine cytologic evaluation may be able to identify mutations associated with ovarian and endometrial cancers.

Researchers have identified the molecular basis behind two concepts in ovarian cancer that allow tumor stem cells to survive and proliferate even after treatment.

Although the association between VEGF and ovarian cancer has been known for quite some time, researchers are still struggling to use drugs that inhibit VEGF and angiogenesis in patients with the disease.

Cristi Radford, MS, CGC, from the Sarasota Memorial Hospital, discusses examining cancer gene panels using next generation sequencing for patients with ovarian cancer.

An exploratory analysis of the phase III AURELIA trial demonstrated that adding bevacizumab (Avastin) to chemotherapy in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer benefited patients across treatment cohorts.

Interim data from a phase II clinical study of the dendritic cell vaccine CVac in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer showed promising signs of improving PFS compared with the observational standard of care.

Jason A. Konner, MD, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, explains that one of the main drivers behind research into bevacizumab in ovarian cancer is to identify which patients will benefit the most from the treatment.

Maurie Markman, MD, from Cancer Treatment Centers of America, discusses the AURELIA trial that examined the addition of bevacizumab to chemotherapy for women with platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer.