Hope Racing Towards the Finish Line

Impact • Spring 2012

Meet Catherine Z's Hope, a prize-winning thoroughbred whose earnings help support the Rivkin Center.

PARP Inhibitor Drug Delays Progression of Ovarian Cancer

NCI Cancer Bulletin • April 3, 2012

Long-term therapy with the targeted drug olaparib (a PARP inhibitor) significantly improved progression-free survival among women with the most common type of ovarian cancer in a randomized, placebo-controlled phase II clinical trial.

Out of Tragedy | Two Families, One Disease and a Lifetime of Inspiration

Issaquah / Sammamish Reporter • March 31, 2012

Nine years after losing two women to cancer, the White family is still partnering on the fight for a cure.

PARP Inhibitors May Be Useful in Ovarian Cancer Treatment of Women Without BRCA mutations

OHSU Knight Cancer Institute • January 13, 2012

New study by 2012 Symposium Planning Committee member Dr. Tanja Pejovic, MD, PhD suggests that more patients than initially thought could potentially be treated with a new class of drugs called PARP inhibitors.

Ovarian Cancer Patients with BRCA Mutations May Fare Better than Non-Carriers

NCI Cancer Bulletin • January 24, 2012

A large, multicenter study shows that women with ovarian cancer who have mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have better survival rates than women who do not have such mutations.

Bevacizumab (Avastin) May Benefit Some Women With Ovarian Cancer

NCI Cancer Bulletin • January 10, 2012

The targeted drug bevacizumab (Avastin) extends the amount of time women with advanced ovarian cancer live without their disease progressing, according to findings from two phase III clinical trials. The results were published December 29 in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The Rivkin Center Announces the Lester and Bernice Smith Fellow and Recipient of its 2011-2012 Scientific Challenge Grant

Press Release • July 1, 2011

Today, the Rivkin Center is delighted to announce that Professor David Bowtell at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Center in Melbourne, Australia has been selected as the Lester and Bernice Smith Fellow and recipient of the Scientific Challenge Grant.

$150,000 Gift from the Smith Family Helps Accelerate Early Detection Research

Press Release • June 17, 2011

With a generous underwriting gift from the Lester and Bernice Smith Foundation, the Marsha Rivkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research has announced a new $150,000 Scientific Challenge Grant focused on early detection of ovarian cancer.

Testing Dose-Dense Paclitaxel for Ovarian and Related Cancers

NCI Cancer Bulletin • May 3, 2011

Advanced cancer (stage III or IV) is typically treated with combination chemotherapy using a taxane drug, such as paclitaxel, and a platinum-based drug, carboplatin. Emerging evidence suggests the addition of drugs that target angiogenesis may improve outcomes for these patients.

Ovarian Cancer Study Raises Questions about Developing Markers for Early Detection

NCI Cancer Bulletin • March 8, 2011

A long-awaited assessment of potential biomarkers for detecting early ovarian cancer shows that blood levels of the CA-125 protein remain the best predictor of the disease. But if there is to be any hope that screening will reduce deaths from this disease, then more accurate markers would have to be developed.

Bevacizumab offers new hope to ovarian cancer patients

www.cancernetwork.com • November 29, 2010

Early results from the ICON7 trial suggest that adding bevacizumab (Avastin) to standard chemotherapy in women with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer reduces the risk of disease progression during the first year of treatment.

Mutations Linked to Two Uncommon Forms of Ovarian Cancer

NCI Cancer Bulletin • September 21, 2010

Mutations in a gene called ARID1A may play a key role in the development of two types of ovarian cancer, according to studies published online September 8 in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) and September 8 in Science Express.

For Women with BRCA Mutations, Prophylactic Surgery Reduces Cancer Risk

NCI Cancer Bulletin • September 7, 2010

Prophylactic surgery to remove the breasts and ovaries is an effective way to reduce the risk of breast and ovarian cancer among women with inherited mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes

Drug that Inhibits DNA-repair Enzyme Shrinks Some Breast and Ovarian Tumors

NCI Cancer Bulletin • July 13, 2010

In two small phase II clinical trials, the drug olaparib, which blocks a DNA-repair enzyme called PARP, shrank tumors or stopped the progression of advanced breast and ovarian cancer in some women with inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations.

Potential Benefit of Screening Women at Average Risk for Ovarian Cancer

WebMD Health News • May 20, 2010

A new screening approach shows promise for the detection of ovarian cancer in postmenopausal women at average risk of the disease, early testing suggests.

Wanda Jankelson Foundation for Health Care and Research Makes $500,000 Challenge Gift to the Marsha Rivkin Center

Press Release • March 3, 2010

In a landmark contribution to the Marsha Rivkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research, the Wanda Jankelson Foundation for Health Care and Research has made a $500,000 "challenge" gift to help advance innovative research in ovarian cancer.

Newly published results from Dr. Nicole Urban and colleagues

Ovarian Cancer Study Tests Lead Time of Potential Biomarkers

NCI Cancer Bulletin • January 12, 2010

Teams of scientists around the world are working to develop ways to detect early signs of ovarian cancer in blood. Considerable progress has been made in understanding the disease ...

Nicole Urban, Ph.D.: Making Progress in Cancer Detection

Seattle Woman Magazine • October, 2009

“I wanted to do something where I could make a difference,” says Nicole Urban, Ph.D. And making a difference is exactly what Urban has been doing for the past 25 years as a leading researcher at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.

Modified Chemo Regimen Effective in Advanced Ovarian Cancer

NCI Cancer Bulletin • September 22, 2009

Women with advanced ovarian cancer lived longer and without their tumors growing after receiving a modified regimen of a standard chemotherapy drug combination, Japanese researchers reported...

Risk of Ovarian Cancer from Hormone Therapy Confirmed

NCI Cancer Bulletin • July 14, 2009

Women who have taken hormone therapy are at a higher risk of developing ovarian cancer than women who have not, according to a nationwide study involving nearly 910,000 women in Denmark.

Genetic Clue to Rare Ovarian Cancers Found

NCI Cancer Bulletin • June 16, 2009

Canadian researchers have identified a gene mutation that appears to be common in a rare form of ovarian cancer known as granulosa-cell tumors.

Protein a clue to ovary cancer

NCI Cancer Bulletin • September 5, 2008

In Washington state—where more women die from ovarian cancer than in most parts of the country—tumors are too often diagnosed too late...

MRC Funded Research: Symptoms Found for Early Check On Ovary Cancer

NY Times • June 13, 2007

Cancer experts have identified a set of health problems that may be symptoms of ovarian cancer, and they are urging women who have the symptoms for more than a few weeks to see their doctors.

Roccer Moms Raise $10,000

Seattle Times • May 10, 2007

Tami Vogeler and Teri Chambers call themselves the Roccer Moms. That's not a spelling error...