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The contribution of catumaxomab in the treatment of malignant ascites in patients with ovarian cancer: a review of the literature

  • Gynecologic Oncology
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Abstract

The approval of the first specific drug catumaxomab for the treatment of malignant ascites is the subject of this review. This trifunctional antibody is known to kill EpCAM-positive tumor cells and therefore attacks the primary cause of malignant ascites formation in the peritoneal cavity. Until today catumaxomab is the only EpCam-targeted antibody approved by the European Medicines Agency. Ovarian cancer is caused by epithelial tumors cells which overexpress epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM). The existing literature concerning the use of catumaxomab for the treatment of malignant ascites associated with ovarian cancer until today is reported in this article. It is very encouraging that different prospective studies from diverse scientific teams recently presented positive results concerning the efficacy and the safety of catumaxomab in the treatment of malignant ascites in patients with ovarian cancer. A case of a patient with ovarian cancer FIGO IIIc is also referred in this article. A complete remission and stable disease was found after 4 i.p. infusions of catumaxomab.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Democritus University of Thrace, Alexandroupolis, Greece

    Panagiotis Tsikouras, Nikolaos Tsagias, Petros Pinidis, Alexandros Dafopoulos, Sophia Bouchlariotou & Anastasios Liberis

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Clinicum Aschaffenburg, Teaching Hospital of University Würzburg, Aschaffenburg, Germany

    Roland Csorba, Alexander Tobias Teichmann & Georg Friedrich von Tempelhoff

  3. 2nd Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aretaiteio Hospital, University of Athens Medical School, Athens, Greece

    Nikolaos Vrachnis

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  1. Panagiotis Tsikouras
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Correspondence to Panagiotis Tsikouras.

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Tsikouras, P., Tsagias, N., Pinidis, P. et al. The contribution of catumaxomab in the treatment of malignant ascites in patients with ovarian cancer: a review of the literature. Arch Gynecol Obstet 288, 581–585 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-013-2868-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-013-2868-y

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