PARP inhibitors are a promising new class of ovarian cancer drugs, and the number of women known to benefit from them is on the rise. The goal of PARP inhibitors is to maintain the progress made by your surgery and chemotherapy. That’s why doctors refer to PARP inhibitors as something called “maintenance therapy.”
The good news is that almost all women are now eligible for PARP inhibitors sometime during their treatment. Having said that, the question as to when someone may be eligible to receive PARP inhibitors depends on several factors, including genetic characteristics. For example, women with BRCA mutations tend to respond best to PARP inhibitors. These women may be able to take PARP inhibitors early on in their treatment, after their initial surgery and chemotherapy.
If, however, you don’t have a BRCA mutation, you may be a candidate to go on PARP inhibitor maintenance after your cancer returns if you responded to your chemotherapy. These factors make it crucial to consider genetic testing after your ovarian cancer diagnosis. Right now, only about 40 percent of women with ovarian cancer treatment get genetic testing done — making it important that you bring it up with your doctor.
Another factor that determines who can benefit from PARP inhibitors is chemotherapy response. In general, Dr. Lyndsay Willmott says, patients need to have at least some response to chemotherapy to be eligible to receive PARP inhibitors.
Most recently, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) released new guidelines recommending PARP inhibitors be offered to women, with or without genetic mutations, who are newly diagnosed with stage III or IV ovarian cancer and have improved with chemotherapy.
“Again, maintenance essentially is when you finish your chemotherapy, and you go on to a different kind of medication to try to maintain the effect of that chemotherapy,” Dr. Willmott says.
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
Dr. Lyndsay Willmott is a gynecologic oncologist at Arizona Oncology. Read More
PARP inhibitors are a promising new class of ovarian cancer drugs, and the number of women known to benefit from them is on the rise. The goal of PARP inhibitors is to maintain the progress made by your surgery and chemotherapy. That’s why doctors refer to PARP inhibitors as something called “maintenance therapy.”
The good news is that almost all women are now eligible for PARP inhibitors sometime during their treatment. Having said that, the question as to when someone may be eligible to receive PARP inhibitors depends on several factors, including genetic characteristics. For example, women with BRCA mutations tend to respond best to PARP inhibitors. These women may be able to take PARP inhibitors early on in their treatment, after their initial surgery and chemotherapy.
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If, however, you don’t have a BRCA mutation, you may be a candidate to go on PARP inhibitor maintenance after your cancer returns if you responded to your chemotherapy. These factors make it crucial to consider genetic testing after your ovarian cancer diagnosis. Right now, only about 40 percent of women with ovarian cancer treatment get genetic testing done — making it important that you bring it up with your doctor.
Another factor that determines who can benefit from PARP inhibitors is chemotherapy response. In general, Dr. Lyndsay Willmott says, patients need to have at least some response to chemotherapy to be eligible to receive PARP inhibitors.
Most recently, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) released new guidelines recommending PARP inhibitors be offered to women, with or without genetic mutations, who are newly diagnosed with stage III or IV ovarian cancer and have improved with chemotherapy.
“Again, maintenance essentially is when you finish your chemotherapy, and you go on to a different kind of medication to try to maintain the effect of that chemotherapy,” Dr. Willmott says.
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
Dr. Lyndsay Willmott is a gynecologic oncologist at Arizona Oncology. Read More
