Cervical cancer is a serious health problem, with nearly 500000 women developing the disease each year worldwide. Most cases occur in less developed countries where no effective screening systems are available. Risk factors include exposure to human papillomavirus, smoking, and immune-system dysfunction. Most women with early-stage tumours can be cured, although long-term morbidity from treatment is common. Results of randomised clinical trials have shown that for women with locally advanced cancers, chemoradiotherapy should be regarded as the standard of care; however, the applicability of this treatment to women in less developed countries remains largely untested. Many women with localised (stage IB) tumours even now receive various combinations of surgery and radiotherapy, despite unresolved concern about the morbidity of this approach compared with definitive radiotherapy or radical surgery. Treatment of recurrent cervical cancer remains largely ineffective. Quality of life should be taken into account in treatment of women with primary and recurrent cervical cancer.

Background On August 14, 2014, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved the anti-angiogenesis drug, bevacizumab, for women with advanced cervical cancer based on a 2012 interim analysis of 271 deaths on GOG protocol 240. We now report the planned protocol-specified final analysis of the primary objective, overall survival (OS). Methods A phase III randomized trial using a 2×2 factorial design was conducted to determine whether intravenous chemotherapy [(cisplatin 50 mg/m2 plus paclitaxel 135 or 175 mg/m2) or (topotecan 0.75 mg/m2 days 1–3 plus paclitaxel 175 mg/m2)] with or without bevacizumab (15 mg/kg) improves OS in recurrent/persistent/metastatic cervical cancer. Patients were prospectively stratified by performance status, prior radiosensitizing platinum, and disease status. We estimated enrolling 450 patients with 346 deaths at final analysis to provide 90% power to detect a 30% reduction in risk of death. Findings On March 7, 2014, 348 deaths occurred among 452 patients. Regimens administering bevacizumab continued to demonstrate significant improvement in OS: 16.8 vs 13.3 mos (HR 0.77;95% CI 0.62–0.95;p=0.0068). Updated progression-free survival also favored bevacizumab (HR 0.68;95% CI 0.56–0.84;p=0.0002). Final OS among 20% (n=91) not treated with prior pelvic radiotherapy was 24.5 (bevacizumab) vs 16.8 mos (without bevacizumab). Fistula (any grade) occurred in 14.5% (n=32) receiving bevacizumab (all previously irradiated). Grade 3+ fistula developed in 5.9% (n=13) and did not result in surgical emergency, sepsis and/or death. Post-progression OS was not significantly different among those who did and did not receive bevacizumab (median 8.4 vs 7.1 mos: HR 0.32;95% CI 0.66–1.05;p=0.06). Interpretation The benefit conferred by incorporation of bevacizumab is sustained with extended follow-up as evidenced by the survival curves remaining separated. Following progression on bevacizumab, a negative rebound effect was not observed. This represents proof-of-concept of the efficacy and tolerability of anti-angiogenesis therapy in advanced cervical cancer. Funding National Cancer Institute (USA).

IMPORTANCE Patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma frequently develop resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, at which time treatment options become limited. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor niraparib combined with pembrolizumab in patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS The TOPACIO/KEYNOTE-162 (Niraparib in Combination With Pembrolizumab in Patients With Triple-Negative Breast Cancer or Ovarian Cancer) trial, an open-label, single-arm phases 1 and 2 study enrolled women with advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) or recurrent ovarian carcinoma, irrespective of BRCA mutation status. Median follow-up was 12.4 months (range, 1.2 to Ն23.0 months). Data were collected from

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Resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy is the major barrier to treating epithelial ovarian cancer. To improve patient outcomes, it is critical to identify the underlying mechanisms that promote platinum resistance. Emerging evidence supports the concept that platinum-based therapies are able to eliminate the bulk of differentiated cancer cells, but are unable to eliminate cancer initiating cells (CIC). To date, the relevant pathways that regulate ovarian CICs remain elusive. Several correlative studies have shown that Wnt/β-catenin pathway activation is associated with poor outcomes in patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC). However, the functional relevance of these findings remain to be delineated. We have uncovered that Wnt/β-catenin pathway activation is a critical driver of HGSOC chemotherapy resistance, and targeted inhibition of this pathway, which eliminates CICs, represents a novel and effective treatment for chemoresistant HGSOC. Here we show that Wnt/β-catenin signaling is activated in ovarian CICs, and targeted inhibition of β-catenin potently sensitized cells to cisplatin and decreased CIC tumor sphere formation. Furthermore, the Wnt/β-catenin specific inhibitor iCG-001 potently sensitized cells to cisplatin and decreased stem-cell frequency in platinum resistant cells. Taken together, our data is the first report providing evidence that the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway maintains stem-like properties and drug resistance of primary HGSOC PDX derived platinum resistant models, and therapeutic targeting of this pathway with iCG-001/PRI-724, which has been shown to be well tolerated in Phase I trials, may be an effective treatment option.

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