Ovarian cancer genetics and targeted treatment
Benedict B Benigno
Ovarian Cancer Institute, USA
: J Clin Exp Oncol
Abstract
Very little has changed in the management of patients with ovarian cancer in the last 30 years. Carboplatinum and Taxol are still given as first-line chemotherapy, and drugs such as Doxil, Gemzar and Topotecan, among others, are given for recurrent disease. Avastin, a VEGF inhibitor, is added to a chemotherapy regimen or is given alone. The PARP inhibitors represent a new class of drugs for patients with ovarian cancer. Unlike chemotherapy drugs, which work in various stages of division in the cell cycle, these drugs exert their effect within breaks in the DNA molecule. They are given orally and are far better tolerated than cytotoxic chemotherapy. They can be given only under very strict guidelines, but in those patients who were eligible to take them, we are seeing startling results. Even in patients who have failed three prior regimens of chemotherapy, there is an objective response rate of 34%. This lecture will address the role of these agents in the modern management of ovarian cancer. Physiology, dosage, results and complications will be discussed in detail so that the audience will have an in-depth understanding of this extraordinary new class of drugs.
Biography
Benedict B Benigno is a world-renowned Gynecologic Surgeon and Oncologist who has spent his career treating women with ovarian cancer. In 1999, he founded the Ovarian Cancer Institute and serves as its CEO. He received his MD degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine, and completed his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center in New York City. He completed two fellowships in Gynecologic Oncology, one at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta and the other at the M D Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute in Houston. He is the Founder and President of University Gynecologic Oncology and the Director of Gynecologic Oncology at Northside Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a member of many societies including the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists, the Felix Rutledge Society, and the American Society of Clinical Oncologists. He is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Emory University School of Medicine, the Morehouse School of Medicine, and Mercer University. He serves on the board of the Parker H Petit Institute of Bioengineering and Bioscience at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has published numerous articles and textbook chapters, and travels the world speaking on various aspects of gynecologic cancer. He is the author of the book, “The Ultimate Guide to Ovarian Cancer: Everything You Need to Know about Diagnosis, Treatment, and Research”. He was honored in 2002 with the Hero of Medicine Award for the Most Innovative Cancer Research in the State of Georgia. In 2014, he was appointed to the ovarian cancer steering committee based in the National Institute of Health.
Email: Benedict.Benigno@northside.com
