Combination Niraparib plus Pembrolizumab Shows Promise

(June 18, 2019) Results of new trials, funded in part by OCRA though the Ovarian Cancer Dream Team and published in JAMA Oncology, show that combination niraparib plus pembrolizumab therapy showed promising antitumor activity in patients with ovarian cancer.

Patients with recurrent ovarian carcinoma frequently develop resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy, at which time treatment options become limited. Here, single-arm phases 1 and 2 trials sought to determine the clinical activity and safety of combination therapy of niraparib plus pembrolizumab in patients with platinum-based chemotherapy–resistant ovarian carcinoma or those not eligible for retreatment with a platinum-based chemotherapy.  Sixty-two patients with ovarian carcinoma were enrolled in this open-label, single-arm phases 1 and 2 study. Among the 60 evaluable patients, 3 had complete responses, 8 had partial responses, and 28 had stable disease.

This positive result led researchers to conclude that niraparib in combination with pembrolizumab is tolerable, with promising antitumor activity for patients with ovarian carcinoma who have limited treatment options regardless of platinum status, biomarker status, or prior treatment with bevacizumab. Responses in patients without tumor BRCA mutations or non-HRD cancers were higher than expected with either agent as monotherapy.