Ovarian Cancer and Olaparib

Ovarian cancer is one of the most common cancer killers for women and the risk to contract it is increasing with deterioration of general environment, the food we take and more importantly the increasing mental stress as a part of modern lives. They all attribute to the increasing chance for women to get ovarian cancers.

But from the drug design process for ovarian cancer, it was found that the disease is gene mutation caused, and without replacing the mutated genes with healthy ones or removing ovarian, the condition can be only maintained. Fortunately, the discovery of olaparib against the cancer helps to control the disease and prolong survival time.  

Olaparib was approved by the Food and Drug Administration of America (FDA) in December, 2015, and then put into market. But the studies on it never stop after its approval on practical use. A recent study has showed that the medication can improve the survival rate as high as 27%.

How olaparib work to get the condition controlled?

By inhibiting a protein called PARP (Poly ADP-ribose polymerase) that help the damaged cells get repaired and in this place, the protein helps to restore the gene named BRCA. Thus by hindering the production of PARP, the cancer cells can’t be renewed and will decrease in number gradually. It’s indirect inhibiting the expression of the mutated gene. That’s the general mechanism of olaparib.

With the mechanism of olaparib, it’s being tried on other types of cancers as the theory can be mimicked. Gsk126 is an example.

References 

LYNPARZA (olaparib): Latest Data Suggest Potential Overall Survival Advantage in Patients with Platinum Sensitive Ovarian Cancer

Olaparib (Lynparza)-Cancer Research UK