A step forward against advanced ovarian cancer

In patients with the Brca gene mutation, olaparib, a drug of the clbad Parp inhibitors, has been shown to be effective in first-line therapy [19659007] For women with advanced ovarian tumors linked to a mutation in the Brca genes, the Parp inhibitors represented a significant change to control the disease. And now we have new positive data on the possibility of using one of these drugs, olaparib, already on the front line of treatment.

The data come from the Phase III clinical trial SOLO-1, which evaluated the efficacy and safety of olaparib tablets as first-line monotherapy compared to placebo. The study was conducted on 391 patients with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation who had a complete or partial clinical response after platinum-based chemotherapy. Eligible patients were divided (in a proportion of 2 to 1) to receive olaparib tablets (300 mg) or placebo twice a day. Well, women who took PIP inhibitor showed a statistically and clinically significant improvement in progression-free survival of the disease compared to others. "The results of the SOLO-1 study confirm the efficacy of olaparib as the only PARP inhibitor that has shown a significant benefit for the first-line treatment of patients with cancer." Ovary with a BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutation ". Colombo, Associate Professor of Obstetrics-Gynecology, University of Milan-Bicocca and Director of the Oncology Gynecology Program of the European Institute of Oncology, the center that helped enroll the largest number of patients in the world.

  • BRAND GENES AND DNA REPAIR

The Brca1 and Brca2 genes produce the proteins responsible for the repair of damaged DNA and play an important role in maintaining the genetic stability of cells . When one of these genes is mutated or altered, the respective protein is not produced or is defective, and damage to the DNA can not be adequately repaired. As a result, cells are more likely to develop more general alterations that can lead to cancer. Inhibitors of parp act on another protein that specifically intervenes in the repair, in part, damage to the DNA: by blocking this mechanism, they can then drive cancer cells to death.

Ovarian cancer in the world is the seventh most common cancer and the eighth leading cause of cancer death in women. The five-year survival rate of ovarian cancer in the world is 30 to 40%. The newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer has the primary goal of delaying the disease's progression for the longest time possible and maintain the quality of life of the patient in order to achieve a complete remission or a definitive cure. "The importance of access to the BRCA test is fundamental in terms of prevention," concludes Sandro Pignata, director of the Department of Uro-Gynecological Medical Oncology of the Pascale Tumors Institute of Naples and National coordinator of the SOLO2 study: "The results of this study study confirm, once again, the centrality of the test also in predictive terms. Patients with ovarian cancer should therefore undergo a diagnostic test to obtain olaparib as first-line therapy. "