A clinical trial has found that relacorilant, a drug being investigated for a rare disease, could extend survival in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. The study, published in The Lancet, analysed data from 381 patients and showed a 35% reduction in the risk of death among those treated with relacorilant compared with usual care.
Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer occurs when the disease progresses within six months of platinum-based chemotherapy. Patients typically survive for only a year after diagnosis, with limited treatment options. In the trial, patients on relacorilant lived an average of four months longer than those in the control group.
A separate study involving 643 patients found that pembrolizumab, an immunotherapy drug, extended survival to an average of 17.7 months compared with 14 months for usual care alone. Both drugs are at phase 3 and require further testing before UK approval, though they have been approved in the US for this indication.
Ovarian cancer is the sixth most common cancer among women in the UK, with about 7,600 cases diagnosed annually and 3,900 deaths each year. The researchers concluded that relacorilant could become a new standard treatment for platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.
