Rucaparib versus standard chemotherapy for relapsed BRCA1- or BRCA2-mutated ovarian carcinoma

Few prospective studies have compared PARP inhibitors to chemotherapy for the treatment of BRCA1-mutated or BRCA2-mutated ovarian carcinoma. The multinational phase 3 ARIEL4 study randomized patients with BRCA1/2-mutated ovarian carcinoma after at least two previous chemotherapy regimens to rucarparib or standard-of-care chemotherapy. In the efficacy population the median progression-free survival was 7.4 months with rucaparib versus 5.7 months with chemotherapy (HR 0.67; p=0.0017). The authors conclude that these results support use of rucaparib as an alternative treatment option to chemotherapy for patients with relapsed, BRCA1-mutated or BRCA2-mutated ovarian carcinoma.