Anti-angiogenesis therapy in gynecologic malignancies.

Abstract

Anti-angiogenic agents are an important adjuvant treatment strategy in gynecologic cancer. Bevacizumab was recently approved for use in advanced cervical cancer and platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. The overall survival advantage bevacizumab confers in advanced cervical cancer prompted a paradigm shift in the standard of care for this disease. Because many other therapeutic options are available, and because of the heterogeneity of ovarian malignancies, the best combination of chemotherapeutics and bevacizumab has yet to be determined; studies are on-going. The utility of bevacizumab in uterine cancer has not been consistently demonstrated; current studies are limited to early-phase clinical trials. Other anti-angiogenic agents, including oral therapies for cervical and ovarian cancers, are under investigation; this therapeutic class of drugs appears promising.