Experimental women's cancer drug boosts survival rates in notable study
A new drug is showing promise in tackling treatment-resistant ovarian cancer.
Relacorilant, the drug tested in a phase 3 ROSELLA trial with Corcept Therapeutics in California, was found to improve overall survival and progression of the disease when matched with a chemotherapy drug called nab-paclitaxel.
The ROSELLA trial, conducted in collaboration with The GOG Foundation, analyzed 381 patients around the world, including the U.S., Europe, South Korea, Brazil, Argentina, Canada and Australia, according to a press release.
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The large, randomized phase 3 study revealed a 30% reduction in risk of disease progression in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, compared to those just treated with nab-paclitaxel. (Some types of chemotherapy contain the element platinum.)
The researchers also noted "significant improvement" in overall survival with this combination of drugs.
Relacorilant, which is administered as an oral pill, was reportedly "well-tolerated" by patients without increased side effects.
The drug is administered by mouth one day before, the day of and one day after nab-paclitaxel therapy, which is given via infusion every week.
The findings will be presented at a medical conference later this year, researchers say. Results from the Phase 2 were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology in 2023.
Ovarian cancer is the fifth most common cause of cancer death in women and is the deadliest of gynecologic cancers, according to the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance.
Alexander B. Olawaiye, MD, director of gynecological cancer research at Magee-Women’s Hospital at the University of Pittsburgh and principal investigator in the ROSELLA trial, discussed the results with Fox News Digital.
Olawaiye echoed that this new agent is the "first of its kind" in the battle against cancers that don't have many treatment options.
"That’s what makes the findings of this study really exciting, because it did show a very significant improvement in both progression-free survival and overall survival," he said.
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The expert shared his gratitude to his research team, mentioning that they "never stopped trying" for women undergoing treatment.
"I want to congratulate the women that are being treated for ovarian cancer — first, for helping us to do this trial and second, for the potential that we may now have another option on the block."
Dr. Brian Slomovitz, director of gynecologic oncology and co-chair of the Cancer Research Committee at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida, also commented on these findings in an interview with Fox News Digital.
"We know ovarian cancer is very, very difficult to treat, particularly in those patients who have a disease that’s resistant to the standard chemotherapies," he said.
"For a long time, we've been trying to find treatments that can help patients not only keep the disease away longer, but also live longer. And most of the trials, unfortunately, have been negative."
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Slomovitz, a member of The GOG Foundation, said he considers the ROSELLA trial an "opportunity to use a unique drug" that has shown "positive, encouraging results."
"A 30% decrease in risk of recurrence and a 31% decreased risk of death is promising," he stated.
"To see data like this is refreshing, and it represents something that's exciting for our patients who suffer from ovarian cancer."
Olawaiye shared his hope for the treatment to receive clinical approval "pretty soon."
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As research and technology advance, various cancer treatments have surfaced in the last several years.
Olawaiye commented that the past two decades have been a "very exciting time," as there’s been an "explosion of approvals" for cancer therapies.
"Today's news about Relacorilant is just another addition," he said.