Introduction: Bevacizumab and gemcitabine are key drugs for treating recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer. However, information about the combination of bevacizumab and gemcitabine is insufficient. We conducted a phase II study to assess the feasibility, clinical activity, and toxicity of this combination chemotherapy. Methods: This study included women with platinum-resistant recurrent epithelial ovarian, primary peritoneal, or fallopian tube cancer who received one to three regimens of platinum-based chemotherapy between April 1, 2015 and December 31, 2018. The patients received bevacizumab 15 mg/kg intravenously on day 1 and gemcitabine 1000 mg/m 2 intravenously on days 1 and 8 every 21 days until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. The primary endpoint was the completion rate of three cycles of chemotherapy. This study was registered in the University Medical Information Network (UMIN) Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN000016619). Results: Among the 19 patients, 18 (95%) received ≥3 and 9 (47%) received ≥6 cycles of the study therapy. The objective response rate was 42% (complete response of 16% and partial response of 26%), and the clinical control rate was 84%. Hematological toxicity included neutropenia grade 3/4 in 9 patients (47%), anemia grade 3/4 in 2 (11%), and thrombocytopenia grade 3/4 in 1 (5%). One patient (5%) had grade 3 hypertension, and 1 (5%) had grade 3 protein urea. Possibly related grade 3 pulmonary toxicity was observed in 1 patient. Three patients needed dose reduction of gemcitabine to 800 mg/m 2 due to treatment delay by 15 to 21 days on day1. There was no treatment delay more than 14 days on day 8. The median progression-free survival duration was 5.1 months and median overall survival duration was 21.3 months. Conclusion: The combination chemotherapy with gemcitabine and bevacizumab was feasible, effective and safe. This combination chemotherapy may be explored in a further randomized trial.
Aim: Several years have passed since olaparib maintenance therapy was approved in patients with platinum sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer (PSROC). We speculated that the response to platinum-based chemotherapy (PBC) would be impaired at the time of recurrence after olaparib maintenance therapy. We conducted a noninterventional retrospective study to clarify this clinical question in a single institution. Methods: We included all patients with PSROC who received olaparib after second or later line of PBC between April 18, 2018, and August 31, 2021. We evaluated the effect of olaparib maintenance therapy on PBC after progression. Results: We identified 42 patients who received olaparib maintenance therapy after second or later line of PBC. Twenty-four patients relapsed after olaparib maintenance therapy, and 17 patients received PBC again. Four of 17 patients (complete response 2, partial response 2) responded to the PBC. The median progressionfree survival was longer in patients with platinum-free interval ≥12 months than platinum-free interval of 6-12 months (9.7 vs 2.6 months, hazard ratio, 0.20: 95% confidence interval, 0.04-0.90; p = 0.04). Conclusions: In the patients with PSROC who experienced disease progression after olaparib maintenance therapy, especially in those with platinum-free interval of 6-12 months, the response to subsequent PBC was extremely poor. The efficiency of re-administration of PBC for PSROC patients with a short-term recurrence after olaparib treatment may need to be reconsidered.
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