Ovarian cancer trials begin

A team of Monash University researchers is part of a potential cancer breakthrough that uses a daily oral dose of chemotherapy to treat ovarian cancer.

Professor Magdalena Plebanski is leading the Monash research team that will be part of the Melbourne based trial of a new treatment on 20 ovarian cancer patients.

The trial will test the effectiveness of a single daily pill given to patients in cycles to tackle the disease.

The pill is a form of chemotherapy that, if effectively administered, has the potential to kill off the cells that prevent a patient’s immune system from attacking the cancer itself.

Recent research indicates that particular groups of different cells may be active in 10 to 14 day cycles and that if the chemotherapy pill is administered in the right dose at the right time, it may be effective in removing such ‘interfering’ cells.

Professor Magdalena Plebanski and her colleague Dr Karen Scalzo-Inguanti are with the University’s Department of Immunology and specialise in cellular immunology.

Blood samples will be taken from patients on alternate days to measure indications that the cells are susceptible to being removed by treatment. When levels rise in the cycle, tablets of a low-dose chemotherapy drug will be taken for the subsequent three days.

"We would test the blood samples from patients to ensure that the cells that need to be eliminated with chemotherapy are being targeted effectively. We also test that the cells that we want to remain unaffected by the chemotherapy are doing well. It is very important that we strike the perfect balance between the cells," Professor Plebanski said.

The research teams hope that if this alternative scheduling of chemotherapy proves to be effective in this clinical trial, it may also be translated to other forms of cancer including bowel, lung and soft-tissue cancers.

Women’s Cancer Foundation board member Professor Michael Quinn who is leading the clinical trial team said more will be known about the effectiveness of this alternative drug scheduling in 18-months time.

The researchers are also hoping that $150,000 in funding can be raised to secure the final stage of the trial.

(Source: Monash University: March 2009)