Personalised Timing of Interval Debulking Surgery in Advanced Ovarian Cancer

Launched by THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG · Jun 6, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying the best timing for a specific surgery called interval debulking surgery (IDS) for women with advanced ovarian cancer. Many women with this type of cancer are diagnosed at a later stage when surgery right away isn’t possible. Instead, they first receive chemotherapy to shrink the tumors. This study aims to determine when to perform the surgery by looking at a blood test marker called CA125, which can indicate how well the chemotherapy is working. By customizing the timing of surgery based on this blood marker, the hope is to improve the chances of successful treatment.

To participate in this trial, women must be at least 18 years old and have been diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer that cannot be treated with immediate surgery. They should be in good health overall and able to give their consent to join the study. Participants will receive chemotherapy and, based on their CA125 levels, may have their surgery scheduled at a different time than usual. This trial is currently looking for women who meet these criteria, and it could provide new insights into how to improve treatment for advanced ovarian cancer.

Gender

FEMALE

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • 1. Patients must be at least 18 years old.
• • 2. Patients who have Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score 0-1.
• • 3. Patients who are competent to give informed consent.
• • 4. Patients who have stage III-IV histologically or cytologically confirmed epithelial ovarian cancer, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer not amenable for primary debulking surgery (PDS).
• • 5. Patients who are planned for neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) using platinum-based chemotherapy +/- bevacizumab or biosimilar. Those who are receiving NACT before interval debulking surgery (IDS) are also eligible.
• • 6. Patients who have an evaluable CA125 level at baseline (i.e., baseline level is at least 2x upper limit of normal).
• • 7. Patients who have baseline computed tomography of at least abdomen and pelvis, or positron emission tomography (PET)-CT. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is also acceptable but the same modality has to be used when assessing the feasibility of IDS.
• • 8. Patients who agree to undergo IDS, where the time of IDS may differ from the usual clinical practice.
• • 9. Patients who agree to receive adjuvant chemotherapy, if clinically indicated. The total number of chemotherapy should be at least four or above.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • 1. Patients who have borderline malignancy, or non-epithelial ovarian cancer like germ cell or sex cord tumor, or metastatic diseases from other origins like Krukenberg's tumor
• • 2. Patients who are eligible for PDS
• • 3. Patients who are not fit for PDS because of medical morbidities or refusal of operation
• • 4. Patients who have already started NACT outside the study centres, except those who have just had one cycle within 21 days and the baseline CA125 is available.
• • 5. Patients who are pregnant