Recent advances in targeted therapy for ovarian cancer

Abstract The global burden of ovarian cancer is gradually increasing while patients still suffer from relatively limited treatment options. With recent advances in the decoding of the molecular landscape of ovarian cancer, more options in targeted strategy were offered and can therefore be tailored in different clinical settings for individual patient. Targeting of the abnormal angiogenesis process is the first significant clinical breakthrough which revolutionized the treatment of advanced ovarian cancer, followed by the advent of poly-(ADP)-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. These two strategies represented by bevacizumab and olaparib respectively underwent tests of numerous clinical trials. In recent years, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been incorporated into the blueprint of ovarian cancer treatment though the effectiveness still left much to be desired. Herein, we systematically outlined recent advances in targeted therapy for ovarian cancer and summarized the landmark clinical trials for each targeted therapy including angiogenesis inhibitors, PARP inhibitors and ICIs.