According to experts, individuals who have recently been diagnosed with a medical condition are encouraged to promptly engage in discussions with their healthcare providers regarding a novel treatment plan. A recent study proposes that the implementation of what is referred to as “induction chemotherapy” prior to the conventional treatment regimen significantly enhances the five-year survival rates, particularly in women.
The study reveals that administering chemotherapy to patients diagnosed with locally advanced cervical cancer before initiating the standard treatment regimen results in a remarkable 39 percent improvement in their chances of surviving for five years. This underscores the potential benefits of integrating induction chemotherapy into the overall treatment approach for better long-term outcomes in such cases. Patients are advised to consult with their healthcare professionals to explore the suitability of this approach in their specific medical situation.
“This is the biggest improvement in outcome in this disease in over 20 years,” said lead study author Mary McCormack, MBBS, in a statement made. She is an oncologist at University College London Hospital and Cancer Institute.
A significant number of women who do not undergo regular screening for cervical cancer often receive a diagnosis only when tumors have advanced to a stage where surgical intervention is no longer feasible. The National Cancer Institute reports that cases detected earlier, when surgery remains a viable option, boast a commendable five-year survival rate of approximately 90 percent. Conversely, individuals with larger tumors and locally advanced cancers face significantly diminished chances of survival.
The term “locally advanced,” as defined by the American Cancer Society, signifies that the cancer has extended beyond its initial site in the body but has not yet infiltrated other organs. The implications of such advancement underscore the critical importance of timely and routine cervical cancer screenings to identify and address potential malignancies before they progress to more advanced stages, thereby improving overall survival outcomes for affected individuals.
Induction Chemo Has Shown to Improve Survival Rates
In the latest research, 500 women diagnosed with locally advanced cervical cancer underwent a regimen of five weekly cycles involving the standard care of cisplatin chemotherapy combined with radiation. Before initiating this treatment plan, half of the participants were randomly selected to undergo a six-week induction chemotherapy phase utilizing two drugs, carboplatin and paclitaxel.
The study findings, published in the Annals of Oncology, revealed that with the inclusion of induction chemotherapy, the survival rate at the five-year mark was 80 percent, surpassing the 72 percent observed in the group that received only the standard care protocol.
“The improvement in response to getting chemotherapy before radiation is significant and may be reflective of the ease of starting treatment,” said Angela Jain, MD. She is an assistant professor at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. She also wasn’t part of the new study.
Standard Cervical Cancer Treatment May Start Slow
Dr. Jain explains that the conventional course of chemotherapy and radiation usually commences a few weeks after the initial consultation with an oncologist. However, incorporating induction chemotherapy prior to the standard treatment allows patients to initiate their treatment within approximately one week of the first visit.
Based on the results of the study, induction chemotherapy “is absolutely a treatment that we can start discussing with our patients with a new diagnosis now,” Jain said.
Not only did induction chemotherapy enhance the chances of survival, but it also increased the likelihood of patients remaining free from tumor growth for a five-year period. At the conclusion of the study, 73 percent of individuals undergoing induction chemotherapy exhibited no tumor growth, surpassing the 64 percent rate observed in women receiving standard care alone.
Results May Not be Applicable for Different Races or Cancer Subtypes
One notable constraint of this study lies in its predominant focus on patients hailing from the United Kingdom. It raises the concern that the findings might exhibit variations when extrapolated to populations in different countries or individuals with diverse racial or ethnic backgrounds.
Furthermore, a significant drawback emerges as over half of the participants in the study were diagnosed with locally advanced tumors, characterized by their confinement to the primary site without spreading to adjacent lymph nodes, a condition commonly referred to as node-negative disease. This observation, as highlighted in a statement by Ana Oaknin, MD, PhD, from Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron in Barcelona, Spain, underscores a potential limitation in the generalizability of the study’s outcomes, particularly for those with more advanced disease stages.
“It is important to consider the population recruited and the large proportion of patients — 58 percent — who had node-negative disease, as we know that positive lymph nodes are indicative of a high risk of relapse,” said Dr. Oaknin, who wasn’t involved in the new study.
Nevertheless, there is a pressing demand for improved treatments for cervical cancer. According to Krishnansu Tewari, MD, who directs the gynecologic oncology program at the University of California in Irvine, the study findings indicate that induction chemotherapy could be a promising alternative.
“Standard treatment does lead to remission, but within two to three years the cancer can come back,” Dr. Tewari said. “Induction chemotherapy could be an accessible treatment option because these drugs are available around the world, including in low-resource countries.”
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