Evaluating the Real-World Impact of Bevacizumab in Ovarian Cancer Treatment

A recent real-world study published in the journal Cancer has assessed the effectiveness of adding bevacizumab to first-line chemotherapy in patients with advanced ovarian cancer. The research used electronic health records from a cohort of 1,752 patients diagnosed between 2017 and 2023, with a median follow-up of 1.5 years. Findings indicate that, similar to previous clinical trials, the benefits of bevacizumab are primarily seen in specific high-risk patient groups.

Bevacizumab is a monoclonal antibody targeting vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), which inhibits tumor blood vessel formation and growth. While clinical trials have shown that adding bevacizumab to chemotherapy does not significantly extend overall survival across the entire patient population, subgroup analyses suggest that patients with high-risk prognostic factors—such as advanced disease stages or residual cancer post-surgery—may experience a longer median time to next treatment and a trend toward improved median overall survival.

Specifically, for high-risk patients, those receiving chemo plus bevacizumab had a median time to next treatment of 13.6 months compared to 11.7 months with chemotherapy alone. Additionally, there was a trend suggesting prolonged overall survival (31.1 vs. 27.4 months). Conversely, patients without high-risk factors did not show significant differences with the addition of bevacizumab.

Dr. Linda R. Duska from the University of Virginia emphasized that these real-world data align with clinical trial results, highlighting the importance for clinicians to evaluate individual patient risk profiles before incorporating bevacizumab into treatment plans. Overall, the study underscores that while bevacizumab may benefit certain subpopulations, its use should be tailored to those most likely to derive meaningful clinical advantages.

This research reinforces the notion that personalized treatment strategies remain crucial in ovarian cancer management and could guide future therapeutic decisions in clinical practice.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-bevacizumab-ovarian-cancer-trial-real.html