Synthetic lethality in ovarian cancer

Abstract

Ovarian cancers include several distinct malignancies which differ with respect to clinicopathologic features and prognosis. High-grade serous cancer is the most common histologic subtype and accounts for most ovarian cancer-related deaths. High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) is treated with surgery and platinum-based chemotherapy, but most patients relapse and succumb to chemoresistant disease. The genetic concept of synthetic lethality, in which the synergy of mutations in multiple genes results in cell death, provides a framework to design novel therapeutic approaches to overcome chemoresistance in ovarian cancer. Recent progress in understanding the genomic architecture and hereditary drivers of ovarian cancer has shown potential for synthetic lethality strategies designed around homologous DNA repair. Clinical trials have validated high response rates for PARP inhibitors in patients with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations. Here we discuss the biological rationale behind targeting BRCA-PARP synthetic lethality based on genetic context in ovarian cancer and how this approach is being assessed in the clinic. Applying the concept of synthetic lethality to target non-BRCA-mutant cancers is an ongoing challenge, and we discuss novel approaches to target ovarian cancer using synthetic lethality in combination with and beyond PARP inhibitors. This review will also describe obstacles for synthetic lethality in ovarian cancer and new opportunities to develop potent targeted drugs for patients with ovarian cancer.