Stage III Ovarian Cancer: Karoline's Patient Story
This ovarian cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage III
- Sex
- female
- Treatment
- chemotherapy, surgery, immunotherapy and clinical trial
- Outcome
- Responding Well
Treatment course, step by step
- The patient underwent an 8-hour debulking surgery.
- She then received multiple rounds of chemotherapy and joined two clinical trials, but the cancer was not controlled for long.
- She later enrolled in an immunotherapy trial combining etigilimab with nivolumab.
- Treatment paused after the first infusion because of low blood counts, then resumed after blood transfusions and iron support.
What happened, in summary
The patient was diagnosed with Stage III clear cell ovarian cancer on Feb. 6, 2020 after pain with urination led to a CT scan. The scan showed a mass about the size of her fist on the right ovary, and her gynecologist confirmed cancer.
Her treatment began with an 8-hour debulking surgery to remove as much disease as possible. She then received multiple rounds of chemotherapy and joined two clinical trials, but the cancer did not stay controlled for long. Her team later offered a trial combining the immunotherapy drugs etigilimab and nivolumab.
Low blood counts forced treatment to pause before her second infusion. She became extremely fatigued, required blood transfusions and iron support, and was hospitalized twice. Once her counts recovered, she resumed the trial. After the third infusion she began feeling much better, and by the eighth infusion she felt well. Some tumors had disappeared and others were visibly shrinking.
At the time of the story, she planned to remain on the trial for about another year if the drugs continued working. She described the response as life-changing and remained committed to continuing treatment.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by MD Anderson. Read the original in full
How we source and attribute stories Accuracy and limitations
These are lay summaries of published cancer stories, for information only. No two cancers behave the same way, and nothing here predicts your own diagnosis or replaces advice from your oncology team. Read the full disclaimer