New combination therapy for ovarian cancer shows positive results in Phase I clinical trials

A new combination therapy developed by researchers at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute has showed positive results in 60% of women with recurrent ovarian cancer. To develop the new therapy, researchers took advantage of the fact that ovarian cancer cells have abnormally high a marker called NY-ESO-1 on their surfaces. Researchers gave patients a drug called decitabine to boost NY-ESO-1 levels, and then gave patients a vaccine that tells the patient’s immune system to destroy any tissue showing high levels of the marker NY-ESO-1. Done in combination with chemotherapy, 60% of women tested showed stable disease for several months following treatment.

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