Safety Analysis of Bevacizumab in Ovarian Cancer Patients

Abstract

Bevacizumab (BEV) is beneficial for ovarian cancer patients, but the real world’s patient settings differ from those in clinical trials. This study tries to illustrate adverse events in the Taiwanese population. Patients with epithelial ovarian cancer treated with BEV at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital between 2009 and 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. The receiver operating characteristic curve was adopted to identify the cutoff dose and the presence of BEV-related toxicities. A total of 79 patients receiving BEV in neoadjuvant, frontline, or salvage settings were enrolled. The median follow-up time was 36.2 months. Twenty patients (25.3%) had “De novo” hypertension or the worsening of a preexisting one. Twelve patients (15.2%) had “De novo” proteinuria. Five patients (6.3%) had thromboembolic events/hemorrhage. Four patients (5.1%) had gastrointestinal perforation (GIP), and one patient (1.3%) had wound-healing complications. Patients with BEV-related GIP had at least two risk factors for developing GIP, most of which were conservatively managed. This study revealed a compatible but distinct safety profile from those reported in clinical trials. The presence of BEV-related changes in blood pressure showed a dose-dependent trend. Most of the BEV-related toxicities were managed individually. Patients with potential risks for developing BEV-related GIP should use BEV with caution.