Recurrence treated with olaparib

[SurvivorSusan]

I am new to this site. Diagnosed in 2012 with stage 4 ovarian cancer. Treated with surgery and chemo. Now facing a recurrence. I just joined a clinical trial of olaparib to be used as treatment for a recurrence of ovarian cancer in patients who have had previous chemo and who have the BRCA mutation. So far, so good. (It's been 5 days.) I would love to talk to others who are taking olaparib. My side effects so far are excessive gas in the abdomen and slightly less energy. I'm taking more naps. Otherwise feel good and my mood is good.

[Quakes]

Hi Susan,

I’ve been on Olaparib for a month now. I don’t have the BRCA genes but this is my third recurrence with ovarian cancer. I don’t have serious side effects, but depending on what I eat I do get bloated. I’m still getting lab tests every week to monitor red and white cells, so I’m hoping my blood counts stabilize so I can see if this drug is working. My scan will be sometime in January, so I’ll know if the tumors have stopped growing. Some days I have more energy and then other days I’m very lethargic. I’m glad to hear you are tolerating the drug and I hope it works for you.

Carole

[SurvivorSusan in reply to Quakes]

Hi Carole, Yes, I also have to have weekly blood tests, but I get a CA 125 every four weeks and a CT scan after 8 weeks. So I should know something soon. I notice that I feel better at night just before taking the pills and in the morning when I wake up. Then two hours after taking the pills in the morning I want to take a nap. Sometimes I do and then I feel good for the rest of the day.

[Mousse]

I just started olaparib (Lynparza today). I’ll keep you posted on how I feel and my test results. I have no evidence of tumors from my last PET scan, but my CA 125 jumped up. I was on Doxil/Carbo but my Dr. took me off it because of side effects. There are other posts about the success of Lynparza. I recently attended the Bay Area Cancer Connection Conference. A research oncologist from Stanford spoke about the success of Lynparza.

[SurvivorSusan in reply to Mousse]

All the best, Mousse. Keep us posted.

[Archeveritas]

Hi Susan. So happy that you got on this trial. How long were you cancer free before recurrence?

[SurvivorSusan in reply to Archeveritas]

Over 5.5 years. It was a shock! Once I passed the 5 year mark, I thought I was good forever. Just so happy I don't have to do chemo again.

[jloreth]

Hi Susan,

I've been on Olaparib (Lynparza) for 14 months, I am BRCA negative. I have had very minimal to no side affects. My CA125 has removed below 15; I do have to drink a lot of lemon water to keep my kidney levels in the normal range. I now have my blood tested every two months.

Jules

[jools53 in reply to jloreth]

that's good news and your braca neg too interesting,keep us updated on your success on it best wishes xxx

[Lind58]

That's great news, I hope this is effective treatment for you! wishing you only the very best.

Question - For your first line treatment - What did you have? Carbo/Taxol? Any avastin?