Olaparib Improves PFS in BRCA-mutant Breast Cancer

Olaparib significantly prolonged progression-free survival compared with chemotherapy among patients with HER2-negative, BRCA1/2 mutated metastatic breast cancer, according to a press release from AstraZeneca.¹

The ongoing international, open-label, phase 3 OLYMPIAD trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02000622) randomly assigned 302 patients with metastatic breast cancer who harbored deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA1/2 mutations to receive olaparib orally twice daily or physician’s choice of capecitabine, vinorelbine, or eribulin.

Patients treated with olaparib demonstrated a significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival vs those who received standard of care chemotherapy. Initial findings indicate that the safety of olaparib was consistent with previous studies.

This study is the first randomized trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of a PARP inhibitor to show positive results beyond ovarian cancer.

Olaparib is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as monotherapy for patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA-mutated advanced ovarian cancer who have received at least 3 prior lines of chemotherapy.

Reference

1. Lynparza meets primary endpoint in phase III trial in BRCA-mutated metastatic breast cancer [news release]. Wilmington, DE: AstraZeneca; February 17, 2017. https://www.astrazeneca.com/content/astraz/media-centre/press-releases/2017/lynparza-meets-primary-endpoint-in-phase-iii-trial-in-brca-mutated-metastatic-breast-cancer-17022017.html. Accessed February 21, 2017.