Doctors are hopeful about a new treatment for cervical cancer, which according to studies, reduces the risk of dying from the disease by 40%, marking the biggest advance against the disease in the last 25 years.
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in women in the world, with about 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths each year, according to the World Health Organization. Many of the women affected are in their 30s and despite care, the cancer returns in up to 30% of cases.
The new treatment was tested on patients over 10 years from the United Kingdom, Mexico, India, Italy and Brazil. The treatment involves a preliminary preparation, before patients undergo chemotherapy with radiation - the standard treatment for cervical cancer that involves a combination of chemotherapy and radiation. In research led by University College London, it has been reported that the results of the third phase clinical trial showed a 40% reduction in the risk of dying from the disease and a 35% reduction in the risk of the cancer returning within at least five years.
Dr. Mary McCormack, lead researcher of the clinical trial at UCL, told "The Guardian" that this discovery was the most important advance in the treatment of cervical cancer since the end of the last century. "This is the biggest advance since radiation chemotherapy was approved in 1999," she said.
"Any improvement in the life of a cancer patient is important, especially when the treatment is well tolerated by the body and given for a relatively short time, allowing women to return to their normal lives quickly."
Researchers at UCL and University College London Hospital (UCLH) completed a long-term study of patients who received short chemotherapy treatment before radiation chemotherapy.
The trial, funded by Cancer Research UK and the Clinical Trials Center at UCL, looked at whether a short course of chemotherapy before chemotherapy with radiation could reduce the incidence of recurrence and death in cervical cancer patients.
The clinical trial enrolled 500 women who were randomly assigned to receive the new treatment regimen or the standard treatment of chemotherapy and radiation. None of the patients' tumors had spread to other organs.
In the study, one group received the new six-week chemotherapy treatment with carboplatin and paclitaxel, followed by standard radiation, as well as weekly chemotherapy with cisplatin and brachytherapy (known as radiation chemotherapy). The second group received only the usual chemotherapy and radiation. After five years, 80% of those who first received a short course of chemotherapy were still alive, and in 72% of cases, the cancer had not returned or spread. In the standard treatment group, 72% were alive and 64% had no cancer recurrence or spread.
UCL reported that the clinical trial found a 40% reduction in the risk of death and a 35% reduction in the risk of the cancer returning, when comparing the two groups using different metrics.
Abbie Halls, a customer service manager from London, diagnosed with cervical cancer when she was 27, is one of the women who received the new treatment.
"I've been cancer free for over nine years now and I'm not sure if I would be here without the treatment I received," she said. "I am delighted to be able to play a part in advancing research which I hope will save many women's lives in the years to come."
The results prompted calls for the treatment to be rolled out across the UK and internationally. McCormack said: "A short course of chemotherapy before standard treatment with chemotherapy and radiation significantly increases survival and lowers the risk of recurrence in patients with cervical cancer."
"This is a simple way to make a positive difference, using existing drugs that are inexpensive and already approved for use in patients. "Some cancer treatment centers have adopted it, and there is no reason why it should not be offered to all patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation for this type of cancer," said McCormack.
