The activity of trabectedin as a single agent or in combination with everolimus for clear cell carcinoma of the ovary.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to evaluate the antitumor efficacy of trabectedin in clear cell carcinoma (CCC) of the ovary, which is regarded as an aggressive, chemoresistant, histologic subtype.

Experimental Design: Using 6 human ovarian cancer cell lines (3 CCC and 3 serous adenocarcinomas), the antitumor effects of trabectedin were examined in vitro, and we compared its activity according to histology. We next examined the antitumor activity of trabectedin in both cisplatin-resistant and paclitaxel-resistant CCC cells in vitro.

Vascular endothelial growth factor is a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of clear cell carcinoma of the ovary.

This study examines the role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as a therapeutic target in clear cell carcinoma (CCC) of the ovary, which has been regarded as a chemoresistant histologic subtype. Immunohistochemical analysis using tissue microarrays of 98 primary ovarian cancers revealed that VEGF was strongly expressed both in early-stage and advanced-stage CCC of the ovary. In early-stage CCCs, patients who had tumors with high levels of VEGF had significantly shorter survival than those with low levels of VEGF.

Fasudil inhibits lysophosphatidic acid-induced invasiveness of human ovarian cancer cells.

Ovarian cancer is known to be highly invasive. The poor prognosis of advanced ovarian cancer comes from increased invasiveness of human ovarian cancer cells. The lysophosphatidic acid (LPA)/Rho/Rho-associated kinase (ROCK) pathway is intimately involved in the course of ovarian cancer progression, and the inhibition of this pathway attenuates ovarian cancer invasiveness.

mTOR is a promising therapeutic target both in cisplatin-sensitive and cisplatin-resistant clear cell carcinoma of the ovary.

Purpose: Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) plays a central role in cell proliferation and is regarded as a promising target in cancer therapy, including for ovarian cancer. This study aimed to examine the role of mTOR as a therapeutic target in clear cell carcinoma of the ovary, which is regarded as an aggressive, chemoresistant histologic subtype.

Experimental Design: Using tissue microarrays of 98 primary ovarian cancers (52 clear cell carcinomas and 46 serous adenocarcinomas), the expression of phospho-mTOR was assessed by immunohistochemistry.

In vitro and in vivo assays to analyze the contribution of Rho kinase in angiogenesis.

Therapeutic targeting of angiogenesis has become a novel approach to cancer therapy. The recent discovery of specific molecular targets that modulate the endothelial cell response and the development of suitable methods for assessing the contribution of these targets have given further impetus for the development and therapeutic application of an angiogenesis-targeted therapy. The small GTPase Rho and the major downstream effector, Rho kinase, is well established to regulate cell migration by the formation of stress fibers and the turnover of focal adhesions and plays a pivotal role in endothelial cell organization in angiogenesis.