Dana Farber Webchat: The Latest in Ovarian Cancer Treatment & Research

The latest developments in ovarian cancer treatment and research are addressed in the video below via a Dana-Farber Cancer Institute webchat that was conducted on September 16, 2014.

The Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute conducted a live video webchat panel with Ursula Matulonis, M.D., medical director of the Gynecologic Oncology Program, and gynecologic oncologists Panos Konstantinopoulos, M.D., Ph.D., and Susana Campos, M.D., MPH. The live webchat was held on September 16, 2014.

The general webchat topics addressed by the Dana-Farber doctors are listed below. For your convenience, we also provided the approximate video start time associated with each discussion topic. The entire video runs 49 minutes and 20 seconds.

  • Various types/subtypes of ovarian cancer and treatment differences. [1:40 minutes]
  • CA-125 and other ovarian cancer biomarkers. [5:10 minutes]
  • Areas of ongoing ovarian cancer research. [9:28 minutes]
  • Ovarian cancer treatment alternatives to standard of care chemotherapy. [13:55 minutes]
  • PARP Inhibitors & Immunotherapy. [15:03 minutes]
  • Mechanisms to reverse platinum drug resistance. [17:15 minutes]
  • Correlation between ovarian cancer and HPV (Human papillomavirus). [19:30 minutes]
  • The use of clinical trials for the treatment of ovarian cancer. [19:43 minutes]
  • Stage 1 ovarian cancer prognosis. [21:47 minutes]
  • Gene mutations related to hereditary ovarian cancer risk. [22:55 minutes]
  • Treatment options for platinum drug refractory/resistant ovarian cancer. [25:27 minutes]
  • Treatment of BRCA gene-mutated ovarian cancer patients. [27:50 minutes]
  • Ovarian cancer prevention. [30:18 minutes]
  • Promising treatments for ovarian clear cell cancer. [31:43 minutes]
  • Proper nutrition during and after ovarian cancer treatment. [33:47 minutes]
  • Symptoms associated with an ovarian cancer recurrence. [35:06 minutes]
  • Ovarian neuroendocrine cancer. [36:16 minutes]
  • Small-cell ovarian cancer. [39:22 minutes]
  • Origin of ovarian cancer. [42:41 minutes]
  • Treatment options for isolated or limited recurrent ovarian cancer tumors/lesions. [45:26 minutes]
  • Closing: Most Exciting Ovarian Cancer Developments. [47:07 minutes]

 

Improved Survival of Ovarian Cancer Patients Receiving Treatment Guided by Comprehensive Tumor Profiling

A preliminary report from the Caris Registry™ demonstrated significantly longer post-profiling survival in patients with ovarian, Fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who were given treatments that their tumor profile showed were likely to benefit.

Data from an ovarian cancer registry presented at the 2014 European Society for Gynaecological Oncology (ESGO) annual meeting reinforce comprehensive tumor profiling as a “game changer” for oncologists.

The preliminary report from the Caris Registry™ demonstrated significantly longer post-profiling survival in patients with ovarian, Fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who were given treatments that their tumor profile showed were likely to benefit them, as compared with patients who were treated with drugs that profiling suggested would be less effective. Data[1] revealed that patients whose treatment was guided by tumor profiling had a 46% lower risk of death (Hazard Ratio = 0.54, p value = 0.0018).

The comprehensive tumor profiling service used in the study measures a broad range of cancer “biomarkers” (proteins, genes or other molecules that affect how cancer cells grow, multiply and respond to therapies) and interprets the results to identify treatments most likely to be of benefit and help eliminate those that are less likely to benefit the patient. The results allow oncologists to better determine appropriate treatments for each patient, based on the individual makeup of their cancer rather than the site of the tumor.

Data from earlier studies show that comprehensive tumor profiling consistently identifies biomarkers linked to specific treatments in over 90% of patients[2], and that clinicians change their intended treatment decision based on profiling results in over 80% of cases[3].  Across a range of cancer types, tumor profiling-guided treatment has been shown to benefit patients[4] and improve outcomes when compared to unguided treatment[5].  The ESGO data demonstrate that for many ovarian cancer patients who have run out of options, comprehensive tumor profiling consistently offers oncologists actionable insights to help choose a patient’s next treatment and can improve patient outcomes.

Professor Hani Gabra

Professor Hani Gabra

Professor Hani Gabra, author of the ESGO publication and Director, Ovarian Cancer Action Research Centre at Imperial College London, said:

“The data presented at ESGO this year further support the use of comprehensive tumor profiling. It offers new options to patients whose cancers are difficult to treat or rare, or who have exhausted standard treatment options. I’m extremely excited to see this breadth of research on a global platform and I am hopeful that profiling will be rapidly adopted in clinical practice in Europe.”

Gilda Witte, CEO of Ovarian Cancer Action

Gilda Witte, CEO of Ovarian Cancer Action

Gilda Witte, Chief Executive of Ovarian Cancer Action, stated:

“In order to improve the outlook for women with ovarian cancer, we need to know much more about types of tumors, and tumor profiling is becoming paramount in this area. We are hugely impressed that Caris is investing in research to provide information on ovarian tumors and we hope that this potentially leads to a breakthrough in treatment which may subsequently impact survivorship.”

Andreas Voss

Andreas Voss, VP of Medical & Clinical Affairs, Caris Life Sciences

Andreas Voss, Vice President, Medical and Clinical Affairs, Caris Life Sciences said:

“Comprehensive tumor profiling is a hot topic this year. It is becoming increasingly clear that the best approach to tumor profiling is to use a variety of methods to test for mutations, gene expression levels, and protein biomarkers. These combined analyses provide a comprehensive report and actionable treatment options for oncologists. Caris Molecular Intelligence™ remains the world’s most advanced commercial tumor profiling service – we are proud to be working with leading oncologists worldwide to bring the benefits of tumor profiling to cancer patients.”

Caris Molecular Intelligence™ is not yet formally reimbursed across Europe but it is available to purchase in all European markets. Individual insurance companies, clinics and organizations in some countries have agreed to reimburse the service on application. Caris Life Sciences is dedicated to working to ensure the service is reimbursed across Europe.

References:

1. Poster by Oliver KE et al. Tumour molecular profile-directed treatment is associated with improved survival in recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer. ESGO 2014. See also Oliver KE et al. The impact of tumor molecular profile-directed treatment on survival in recurrent ovarian cancer. J Clin Oncol 32:5s, 2014 (suppl; abstr 5591).

2. Astsaturov IA et al. Profiling of 1,250 neuroendocrine tumors identifies multiple potential drug targets. J Clin Oncol 32, 2014 (Suppl 3; Abstr 214).

3. Epelbaum R et al. Molecular Profiling (MP)-Selected Therapy for the Treatment of Patients with Advanced Pancreaticobiliary Cancer (PBC), 2013 ASCO GI Symposium. Jan 2013. (Abstract Number 195).

4. Von Hoff D et al., Pilot Study Using Molecular Profiling of Patients’ Tumors to Find Potential Targets and Select Treatments for Their Refractory Cancers, J Clin Oncol. Nov 20;28(33)2010:4877-83. Compare Doroshow JH. Selecting systemic cancer therapy one patient at a time: is there a role for molecular profiling of individual patients with advanced solid tumors? J Clin Oncol. 2010 Nov 20;28(33):4869-71. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2010.31.1472. Epub 2010 Oct 4. [PMID: 20921466].

5. Tsimberidou AM et al., Personalized Medicine in a Phase I Clinical Trials Program: The MD Anderson Cancer Center Initiative. Clin Cancer Res 18:6373-6383.

About Caris Life Sciences and Caris Molecular Intelligence™

Caris Life Sciences is a leading biosciences company focused on fulfilling the promise of precision medicine. Caris Molecular Intelligence™, the industry’s first and largest tumor profiling service, provides oncologists with the most potentially clinically actionable treatment options available to personalize care today. Using a variety of advanced and clinically validated technologies, which assess relevant biological changes in each patient’s tumor, Caris Molecular Intelligence correlates biomarker data generated from a tumor with biomarker/drug associations derived from the cancer clinical literature. The company is also developing a series of blood tests based on its proprietary Carisome® TOP™ platform, a revolutionary blood-based testing technology for diagnosis, prognosis, and theranosis of cancer and other complex diseases. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Caris Life Sciences offers services throughout Europe, the U.S., Australia, and other international markets. To learn more, please visit http://www.carislifesciences.eu.

Source:  Improved Survival of Ovarian Cancer Patients Receiving Treatment Guided by Comprehensive Tumor Profiling, Caris Life Sciences Press Release, dated September 11, 2014 (with editorial changes)

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