Organoids to Evaluate an Epigenetic Drug Regimen for HR Proficient Ovarian

Project summary

Ovarian cancer is a rare but deadly disease and is the fifth leading cause of cancer death among women in the United States. Greater than 60% of women are diagnosed with high-grade serous ovarian cancers. Standard first-line treatment for ovarian cancer combines radical surgery with platinum-based chemotherapy, followed by maintenance treatment, of which the majority of patients will achieve initial clinical remission. However, up to 70% of patients will experience a recurrence and ultimately succumb to chemotherapy-resistant disease. Another persistent critical clinical problem is the lack of effective treatment options for poor prognostic chemotherapy-resistant ovarian cancer. There is an increasing need to identify better treatment options for women who do not respond to first-line drugs (chemotherapy and PARPi). Combination therapy using epigenetic drugs, which are drugs that regulate gene expression, have been shown to be effective in these resistant cancers. Here, we propose to use patient-derived ovarian cancer organoids, which are 3D miniaturized and simplified organs made from tumor biopsies and ascites fluid, to screen for novel combination therapies.

This grant was made possible in part by a generous donation from Allison Danré, in memory of Cecile Hryhorczuk.