September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
By Nicole Young, Vitals contributor
A rare, slow-growing type of ovarian cancer called LGSOC (low-grade serous ovarian cancer) disproportionately affects women in their 20s, 30s and 40s. Research conducted on the Central Coast helped pave the way for a first-ever treatment approved by the FDA specifically for LGSOC. Ridley-Tree Cancer Center in Santa Barbara, now part of Sutter Health, participated in the Phase 2 RAMP 201 clinical trial which tested an oral combination therapy now available by prescription called the AVMAPKI™ FAKZYNJA™ CO-PACK trademarks of Verastem Inc.
This medication is used to treat adult patients with KRAS-mutated low-grade serous ovarian cancer. KRAS-mutated means the cancer has a mutation in the KRAS gene which controls how cells grow. When this gene is mutated, it can tell cells to grow where they shouldn’t, helping the cancer to form and spread.
While only 5% of all serous ovarian cancers are LGSOC, the women who have it often experience poor quality of life for long periods of time since there are few available treatments that effectively shrink tumors or stop their growth. An added problem is recurrence: about 80% of women with LGSOC will have their cancer return.
“LGSOC is often resistant to chemotherapy which can make treatment difficult,” remarks Dr. Gregg Newman, medical oncologist at Ridley-Tree Cancer Center and the local Principal Investigator for the RAMP 201 trial. “Recent studies have expanded our knowledge of how the disease works at a molecular level and have led to this new, promising therapy. We continue to participate in clinical trials to help test promising treatments that, if proven effective, are approved by the FDA and made available for use by our patients.”
The FDA approval was based on data from the Phase 2 RAMP 201 study which demonstrated a 44% overall response rate in patients with KRAS mutant recurrent LGSOC. The complete study results were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Ridley-Tree Cancer Center at Sansum Clinic in Santa Barbara
Clinical Research at Ridley-Tree Cancer Center
Ridley-Tree Cancer Center’s Clinical Research Department, funded by the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara, currently participates in 19 clinical trials. Its medical oncologists and clinical researchers collaborate to identify potential patients who are eligible to join a clinical trial.
“Participating in clinical trials helps position us as early-adopters of potentially game-changing cancer treatments. When you’re an early adopter through a clinical trial, you get more repetition with that specific medical advancement which facilitates readiness if and when the drug is approved by the FDA,” said Matt Baumann, Sutter Health vice president, Central Coast Cancer. “When our patients can be among the first to access these breakthrough therapies, it helps us to enhance care for the greater Central Coast community. Research is vital to that level and quality of support.”
Sutter Health is a destination site for cancer clinical trials, offering approximately 150 Phase 1-4 clinical trials of novel cancer treatments. Patients of Ridley-Tree Cancer Center may enroll in more than 45 of those studies locally.
Learn more about clinical trials at Sutter Health here.
Learn more about the treatment of gynecologic cancers at Sutter Health here.
