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CURE’s ovarian cancer page is a go-to resource for oncology news and updates in the world of ovarian cancer Here, readers will find cancer articles, videos, podcasts, and more with expert insight into the latest treatments and research in ovarian cancer.

Last week we saw some FDA approvals come through, as well as research that explored the psychosocial outcomes of individuals who survived pediatric rhabdosarcoma. And finally, we’ll discuss another cancer vaccine clinical trial that got the green light from the Food and Drug Administration.

FDA Approved Besponsa for Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

The first FDA approval of last week was one in the pediatric cancer space. The agency approved Besponsa for children who are at least 1 year old and have relapsed or refractory CD22-positive precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia., also known as ALL.

The approval is coming after findings from a single-arm study involving 53 children. Of which, 22 — that’s 42% — achieved a complete response from the therapy, with the median duration of complete response being 8.2 months. Additionally, the majority of patients who achieved a complete response also had minimal residual disease negativity, which indicates that there were 5% or less blasts found in the bone marrow and no cancer cells detected in the blood.

Having a new treatment option for children with ALL is particularly exciting, as ALL is one of the most common pediatric cancers, according to the American Cancer Society.

FDA Approves Opdivo Plus Chemo for Unresectable or Metastatic Bladder Cancer

Last week, the FDA also approved an immunotherapy/chemotherapy regimen for certain patients with bladder cancer. Specifically, the agency OKed Opdivo plus cisplatin and gemcitabine for the frontline treatment of adults with unresectable or metastatic urothelial carcinoma.

This approval was backed by findings from the CheckMate-901 trial, which showed that the Opdivo-chemotherapy regimen improved overall survival (which is the time patients live before death of any cause) and progression-free survival (which is the time patients live without their disease worsening) compared to those who did not receive Opdivo. The median overall survival was 21.7 months for those who received Opdivo compared to 18.9 months for those who did not, while progression-free survival was 7.9 and 7.6 months, respectively.

FDA Approves Brukinsa, Gazyva Combo for Relapsed, Refractory Follicular Lymphoma

Last week, the Food and Drug Administration also approved Brukinsa plus Gazyva for patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma after findings from the ROSEWOOD trial showed that not only did more patients respond to the two-drug treatment compared to Gazyva alone, but also at a median follow-up of 19 months, more patients were still responding compared to the Gazvya arm as well.

Rhabdomyosarcoma Survivors May Have Poor Psychological Outcomes

, found that survivors of rhabdomyosarcoma — which is a rare cancer affecting soft tissues — may face increased risk of psychological challenges, especially if they were exposed to previous radiation therapy or have a history of smoking.

Researchers examined neurocognitive impairment, emotional distress and health-related quality of life in survivors compared to their siblings. Results showed higher rates of issues like memory impairment and emotional distress among survivors, with smoking linked to poorer outcomes. The CURE® team spoke with study author, Ellen van der Plas on the findings. Here is what she had to say.

Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Trial Gets FDA Clearance to Proceed

The FDA has given the green light for a clinical trial of a vaccine designed to treat advanced ovarian cancer. Known as Innocell, this personalized therapy utilizes cells from the patient's own tumor which is inactivated via riboflavin and UV light. The drug is being manufactured at City of Hope in Los Angeles, and the trial aims to assess the vaccine's safety and effectiveness in stimulating immune response.

This is one of the many cancer vaccines being explored and developed in the oncology space. Check back on prior CURE® coverage for updates on vaccines to treat breast, lung, skin and other cancers.

For more news on cancer updates, research and education, don’t forget to 

Last week we saw some FDA approvals come through, as well as research that explored the psychosocial outcomes of individuals who survived pediatric rhabdosarcoma. 

Oncology Approvals, Psychological Outcomes for Survivors and an Ovarian Cancer Vaccine

It took a 15-minute doctor’s appointment to change Shannon Miller’s life.

Miller, a two-time Olympic gymnast who earned seven medals, was diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer in January 2011. She first had surgery to have a baseball-sized tumor removed from her ovary before undergoing aggressive chemotherapy.

Throughout this experience, she tapped into her competitive and hardworking nature as an athlete to get her through the experience.

“There are so many lessons that I learned through sport that applied very directly to my cancer journey. I think goal setting was a big part of that,” Miller, who was also the keynote speaker at the 2023 Extraordinary Healer® award, said in an interview with CURE®. “They give you a sense of accomplishment along the way.”

Abbey Kaler, M.S., APRN, FNP-C, CMSRN, Wins CURE®’s 2023 Extraordinary Healer® Award

However, when treatment ended, that did not mean the cancer experience was over, Miller explained.

“(During) that next phase post-treatment … part of that journey of trying to figure out this new normal, and figuring out how to make sure not only I was mentally prepared for the next phase, but people around me around me were prepared for that as well,” Miller explained. “Because it's not like you finish treatment and the next day, you're 100% you have to give yourself some grace, give yourself some time to heal and try to figure out your next steps.”

In this episode of the Cancer Horizons podcast, Miller discussed her cancer diagnosis, how she took her athlete mindset to cancer and beyond and one oncology nurse who helped her through it all.

Olympic gymnast, Shannon Miller, sat down with CURE® to discuss her experience with a rare type of ovarian cancer, and how her competitive mindset helped her through. 

Olympian Shares Her Cancer Experience: ‘Give Yourself Grace’

While in her late 20s, Jennifer Broxterman, a registered dietitian and sports nutritionist, began experiencing some gastric and menstrual symptoms that just did not feel right. She had an abnormal Pap smear at a visit with the gynecologist, but clinicians kept telling her that she was young and healthy.

Eventually, Broxterman — who is the founder and CEO of NutritonRX, an Ontario, Canada-based nutrition counseling service — had trouble keeping down any food. A colonoscopy revealed a tumor, and further biopsies and testing led to Broxterman’s diagnosis of stage 3 ovarian cancer at the age 34.

“I was getting judged and not being taken seriously because I didn’t look sick. I didn’t look like someone who had cancer,” Broxterman, who was also a competitive CrossFit athlete at the time of her diagnosis, said in an interview with CURE®.

Instead of getting angry at the health system, Broxterman decided to take charge of her health information. She requested copies of all medical tests that she’d had, reached out to experts about her disease and healing, and spoke up when she needed nutrition counseling, occupational therapy and other services after her surgery — a procedure in which all of her reproductive organs, part of her intestines and bladder and others were removed from her body due to the cancer’s spread.

“For me, I just realized I had to take extreme ownership and empowerment, so I turned it into a positive, not a negative,” she said.

Broxterman opened up to CURE® about her post-surgical difficulties, which included being temporarily paralyzed in one leg, not being able to eat for days on end and relying on family and friends for the many day-to-day aspects of her life that she used to be able to do without a second thought.

“I was back squatting on Friday, and then not able to even wiggle my toes on Monday,” she said.

In this episode of the Cancer Horizons podcast, Broxterman tells her story of being diagnosed, how she feels privileged to be able to advocate for herself and emphasizes that, yes, young and healthy women can get cancer, too.

Before being diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer at the age of 34, Jennifer Broxterman was constantly told that she was young and healthy — but the registered dietitian knew that something was off. 

Young, Healthy People Get Cancer Too

Maria Ciesla is an almost 23-year survivor of stage 1 epithelial ovarian cancer who was unexpectedly diagnosed at age 51. Nearly nine years after finishing treatment, Ciesla got a letter from a family member in Europe informing her that multiple relatives had ovarian cancer. This led Ciesla and her family to do genetic testing, which revealed that she and her daughter, Alex Cornwell, were both carriers of the 

® Talks Cancer” podcast, Ciesla and Cornwell share their stories as part of Merck's 

 program and offer advice for others in the same position.

“To see my mom's journey and know that I have a little bit of knowledge to prevent that is really empowering,” said Cornwell. “And then also, the positive outlook that my mom has had through all this also then makes me feel like, you know, that if something were to happen, that I'm in the driver's seat, that I can make these decisions, I can advocate for myself.”

In this episode of the “CURE® Talks Cancer” podcast, Maria Ciesla, an ovarian cancer survivor, and her daughter Alex Cornwell discuss Ciesla’s cancer journey and how it led them to do genetic testing that revealed they were both carriers of the BRCA1 mutation.

A Family’s Journey with Ovarian Cancer, Genetic Testing and the BRCA1 Mutation

When second grade teacher Brenda Kowalski experienced abdominal issues over the summer of 2020 that eventually landed her in the emergency room, doctors had two words for her that she never expected to hear: ‘ovarian cancer.’

Despite her stage 1 diagnosis, Kowalski maintained her positive outlook and her sense of humor through surgery and treatment, even ending the summer with a socially distanced head shaving party. This week on the 

 Talks Cancer podcast, Kowalski shares her story after being declared cancer free earlier this year, and hopes that others will listen to their bodies and be their own best advocates, too.

“I don't know much, after 44 years, to be true in this world,” Kowalski says. “But I 

 know that if you try to live in gratitude and be thankful that for the things that you do have, even when you get bad news like this, if you can remember what's important… cancer can't take those away.”

This week on the CURE® Talks Cancer podcast, we’re chatting with an ovarian cancer survivor and teacher about how she maintained her sense of humor through treatment and why it’s important to remain connected to your friends and family, especially during your darkest moments.

Survivor Lives in Gratitude Despite Ovarian Cancer

Dr. Valena Wright has spent the last 25 years specializing in the treatment of gynecologic cancers. All that experience, however, did not prepare her for when her sister, Debbie, would be diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

“When you study and practice all of these years, and a member of your family is diagnosed with ovarian cancer — which is the most serious or difficult to treat — I got to see things from a different perspective,” Wright, who is the director of gynecologic oncology at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts, said in an interview with 

®. “And I learned so much from being with my sister during her battle with ovarian cancer. I was disappointed in some of the correspondence or interactions that she had with the medical system.”

That disappointment led Wright to share her sister’s story, along with other women, in a recently released book, “It’s Time You Knew.” The reason for writing the book, according to Wright, is to raise awareness and help others avoid ever having to deal with a cancer diagnosis.

For more news on cancer updates, research and education, don’t forget to

In this episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with a gynecologic cancer expert about how her sister’s journey with ovarian cancer provided her with a different perspective that would lead to raising awareness for others. 

Oncologist Turned Caregiver Offers Guidance About Women's Cancers

Imagine spending several months going from one specialist to the next and being diagnosed, and subsequently treated for, a wide range of conditions and yet still feeling something is not quite right.

For Diane Powis, that imagination became a reality in 2013 when it took 10 months of various specialist visits to receive a diagnosis of stage 3 ovarian cancer, which happened by chance when a colonoscopy to determine if she had colitis could not be completed because a blockage above her colon prevented the gastroenterologist from completing the procedure.

That blockage happened to be her cancer pushing down on her colon. Blindsided by her diagnosis, Powis says she kept thinking “if only” one of her specialist visits during the previous 10 months turned out differently, maybe she would have been diagnosed with an earlier stage of the disease.

“Looking back, if only … they really thought about my family history of breast cancer, and thought of genetics,” Powis said in an interview with 

®. “If only they had looked at my full symptom picture, if only my doctors had coordinated my care with one another and said, ‘Hey, wait a second. This very healthy woman is suddenly having all these symptoms. What does this mean?’ But none of that, sadly, was done.”

In this episode of the “CURE® Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with a patient who was blindsided by her stage 3 ovarian cancer diagnosis several years ago. We talk about how she spent months going from specialist to specialist before finally receiving her diagnosis, and why she dedicates much of her time to advocating for others.  

How 10 Cancer Diagnosis ‘Misses’ Led One Patient to Advocate For Herself, Others

For some, a cross-country trip consists of many stops to marvel at the breathtaking views found at any of the many national monuments found along the way. For one patient with ovarian cancer, however, a cross-country trip that began in Oregon and ended in Maine meant so much more than just taking in the sights.

In this week’s episode, we spoke with Donna Wiegle, a cervical cancer survivor who is currently living with ovarian cancer, who, last summer, trekked across the country on a teal and white Harley Davidson motorcycle to raise awareness about ovarian cancer.

It took Wiegle almost two and a half years to receive her ovarian cancer diagnosis, and as she notes, the sooner the cancer is detected the better. As a result of her experience, she wanted to find a way to inform as many women as possible about the symptoms of ovarian cancer so others could be diagnosed sooner rather than later.

By the end of her journey, Wiegle had ridden more than 6,000 miles, handed out more than 700 pamphlets on the symptoms of ovarian cancer, and raised more than $55,000 for ovarian cancer charities.

In this episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with a cervical cancer survivor - who is currently living with ovarian cancer - about a cross-country journey she took last summer on a teal and white Harley Davidson motorcycle to raise ovarian cancer awareness.
 

Teal on Wheels: Riding to Raise Ovarian Cancer Awareness

Learning of one’s increased risk for cancer can be an overwhelming experience but imagine also being told of the wrong results from your genetic testing.

Maureen Boesen and Connie Busch are forever connected to one another. After they participated in a genetics study at Creighton University led by Dr. Henry Lynch in the mid-1990s, both of their test results actually came back wrong. Maureen, who tested BRCA-positive and underwent preventive surgeries, was, in fact, negative for the genetic mutation, while Connie tested negative and only learned much later, she was actually positive with an increased risk for cancer.

In this week’s episode, we feature a conversation between the pair, who discussed the revelation that changed both of their lives.

“Is there any advice that you would offer?” Maureen asked.

“Don't be afraid of information,” Connie responded. “For me, knowing is better than not knowing. Sticking your head in the sand is not going to get you anywhere. If you have the information up front, you're making the decision, you’re not letting cancer make that decision for you.”

Maureen agreed, adding “For you, your family, your children and their children. It goes far beyond just us.”

In this week’s episode, a pair who is forever connected by their genetic risk for cancer talked about the revelations that came from a study they participated in that changed both of their lives.

A Tale of Two Misdiagnoses

In the United States, there are specific laws in place to protect those who have received a cancer diagnosis as well as for those who are at an increased risk for hereditary cancer. In this week’s episode of the “

Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with Lisa Schlager, from Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered (FORCE), to help break down the types of legal protections in place for these individuals.

FORCE

In this week’s episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with Lisa Schlager, from FORCE, about the types of legal protections in place for those with a genetic risk for cancer.

'Speaking Out' on Legal Protection in Cancer

Ignoring fear and anxiety only allows them to grow until they explode into a full-blown anxiety attack. It’s okay to be scared about cancer progression. 

Ovarian Cancer

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