Dr. Penson on Research With PARP Inhibitors in Ovarian Cancer

Richard T. Penson, MD, MRCP, associate professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School, and clinical director of Medical Gynecologic Oncology, in the Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, discusses unexpected findings from the phase III SOLO3 trial and ongoing research with PARP inhibitors in ovarian cancer.

Olaparib (Lynparza) led to a higher objective response rate versus chemotherapy in patients with platinum-sensitive, relapsed, germline BRCA-mutant ovarian cancer who received ≥2 prior lines of chemotherapy, according to data from the phase III SOLO3 trial. Pneumonitis, one of the adverse events of special interest, was not reported in any patients on trial, says Penson.

Now that PARP inhibitors have shown therapeutic benefit in the frontline maintenance and recurrent settings, investigators are evaluating re-exposure to PARP therapy. For example, in the phase IIIb OReO trial, patients with platinum-sensitive disease with a PARP-free interval ≥6 months will be randomized to maintenance therapy with either olaparib or placebo. The results of the study will shed light on the benefit of re-challenging patients with a PARP inhibitor and potential biomarkers of response, concludes Penson.