[Carboplatin in cancer of the ovary]

Abstract

Platinum is the standard drug in the treatment of patients with ovarian cancer. The sample of more than 2,000 patients enrolled in randomised trials and 2 meta-analyses were largely sufficient to prove that carboplatin and cisplatin are equally effective. Carboplatin dose adaptation according to renal function and AUC decreases drug induced thrombopenia and has allowed carboplatin to be used widely and safely. Combining carboplatin with paclitaxel has brought additional protection against thrombopenia. The carboplatin-paclitaxel regimen can be safely administered every 3 weeks in an outpatient setting assuring a better quality of life than the combination of cisplatin and paclitaxel with equal efficacy. Carboplatin-paclitaxel has thus recently become the standard chemotherapy regimen for patients with advanced ovarian cancer. Forthcoming results of ongoing trials will determine if high carboplatin doses with peripheral hematopoeitic stem cell support in consolidation after first line treatment can benefit patients with advanced disease.