Ovarian Cancer in Relapse: Medical Management Approaches
Eric Pujade-Lauraine Département d’Hématologie et d’Oncologie Médicale, Hôpital Hôtel-Dieu, Paris, France
and Centre Léon Bérard, Lyon, France , Jean-Paul Guastalla
Conclusions
Significant progress has recently been made in
defining the optimal therapeutic strategy for
recurrent ovarian cancer. The combination of
paclitaxel with carboplatin is currently considered
as the standard chemotherapy for the treatment of
relapsing patients with a therapy-free interval over
six months. Regimens substituting new drugs
such as gemcitabine or pegylated liposomal
doxorubicin to paclitaxel in association with
carboplatin may offer platinum-based combinations
with better toxicity profile and quality–of–life.
In addition, the availability of several new drugs
with activity in ovarian cancer has allowed a better
control of recurrences with survival prolongation.
Nevertheless, even these strategies may prove
insufficiently effective, and continued study of
novel therapies designed to target specific
molecular mechanisms of tumour growth may
ultimately be the only hope. We hope the next
decade will yield significant progress in the
treatment of this deadly disease.
