Pregledni rad
Chemotherapy for epithelial ovarian cancer
Višnja Matković
; Gynecolgic Cancer Center, Zagreb University Hospital, Zagreb, Croatia
Sažetak
Systemic chemotherapy following the appropriate surgical procedure is the cornerstone of first – line treatment of epithelial ovarian malignancy.
Ovarian carcinoma is the leading cause of cancer deaths of the female reproductive system. Early – stage ovarian carcinoma is generally asymptomatic; therefore , the majority of women are diagnosed with advanced – stage disease (FIGO stage III or IV). Five – year survival rates for women with stage III or IV disease range from less than 5% to 20%. Current systemic therapy for ovarian cancer consists of combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel. While the majority of patients achieve clinical complete remission after six cycles of chemotherapy , the relapse rate stands at over 50%. Median survival time for patients after recurrence is approximately 2 years. New treatment approaches for patients with advanced ovarian cancer include consolidation and maintenance therapy, intraperitoneal administration of cytotoxic agents, new combination chemotherapy regimens, the development of new cytotoxic agents, and molecular-target therapies.
Palliation and optimizing quality of life as the primary treatment goals for patients with recurrence, as the probability
of cure for this population is remote. Patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma are typically divided into two groups with differing prognoses. Patients with progression on primary therapy or after a treatment-free interval of less than 6 months are considered platinum-resistant; those who relapse or develop progression after a treatment-free interval of greater than 6 months after chemotherapy are platinum sensitive. Platinum sensitive patients are more likely to demonstrate a response to subsequent chemotherapy: therefore, they have a more favorable prognosis.
Ključne riječi
epithelial ovarian cancer; chemotherapy
Hrčak ID:
281509
URI
Datum izdavanja:
7.12.2006.
Posjeta: 507 *