A phase II study of anlotinib as first-line maintenance therapy for advanced ovarian cancer

Anlotinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has shown encouraging antitumor activity in platinum-resistant/refractory ovarian cancer. The efficacy of anlotinib as maintenance therapy in advanced ovarian cancer remains unclear. Therefore, we designed this study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of anlotinib maintenance therapy following first-line treatment with paclitaxel and platinum-based chemotherapy in advanced ovarian cancer. In this single-arm, phase II clinical trial, patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer were received anlotinib monotherapy as maintenance therapy once after a response to platinum-based chemotherapy until tumor progression or intolerable toxicity. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival. From April 2020 to June 2021, 24 patients were enrolled in this study. The median follow-up was 40.17 months (interquartile range, 32.40–47.93 months). Of 21 patients with efficacy value, the median progression-free survival and median overall survival were 15.8 months (95% confidence interval, 6.8–24.8 months) and 43.8 months (95% confidence interval, 25.45–62.15 months). The quality-adjusted progression-free survival was 14.4 months and there were no observed treatment-related deaths or serious treatment-emergent adverse events, demonstrating the safety of anlotinib in maintenance therapy. Anlotinib shows significant potential as a first-line maintenance therapy for advanced ovarian cancer, extending survival and providing a reliable treatment option.