Dr. Matulonis on Individualized Dosing of Niraparib in Ovarian Cancer

Ursula A. Matulonis, MD, director, Gynecologic Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School, discusses individualized dosing of niraparib (Zejula) in the treatment of patients with ovarian cancer.

In the NOVA and QUADRA studies, there was a retrospective analysis of patients with ovarian cancer who received a lowered dose of 200 mg of niraparib rather than the standard 300 mg. The patients received this individualized dose if they weighed <77 kg or had a platelet count <150, Matulonis says. This dose reduction did not appear to compromise the efficacy of the oral PARP inhibitor.

Specifically, in the NOVA study, patients who had been on treatment for at least 4 months did not see a detriment in progression-free survival with the lowered dose. In QUADRA, this dosing strategy of niraparib did not appear to compromise overall response rate, clinical benefit rate at 24 weeks, or overall survival, Matulonis concludes.