New world-first pilot study for Cholangiocarcinoma

In Patient Speak

Durvalumab removes the tumour’s defences, enabling Olaparib (a PARP inhibitor) to enter and disrupt DNA repair in cancer cells, ultimately preventing them from replicating.

PARP inhibitors, like Olaparib, stop a specific DNA repair process in cells. PARP is a protein that acts as a repair crew, fixing small breaks in DNA. In cancer cells, especially those already dealing with faulty repair systems, PARP becomes crucial for their survival. When a PARP inhibitor like Olaparib blocks this repair crew from fixing the DNA breaks, the damage builds up. As a result, the cancer cells can’t survive or replicate, cutting off their last line of defence and causing them to collapse under their own instability.

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New world-first pilot study investigating potential cholangiocarcinoma treatment option now open

We’re proud to announce that a world-first pilot study, investigating a potential cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) treatment option, is now open.

Led by Professor Niall Tebbutt, Dr Fiona Chionh and Dr Laura Tam, BIL-PPP is exploring the efficacy and safety of a combination of investigational drugs, durvalumab and olaparib, in patients with locally advanced or metastatic CCA.

“Often patients aren’t on treatment for all that long because they’re [CCAs] fairly aggressive cancers and we see the cancers progressing quickly,” says Professor Tebbutt.

What is BIL-PPP investigating?

BIL-PPP will explore evidence that many CCAs harbour mutations in the homologous recombination repair pathway, meaning they may be sensitive to PARP inhibitors. To do this, the study will test whether adding olaparib to durvalumab in the maintenance setting after initial chemotherapy and durvalumab is successful in controlling CCAs.

“We’re increasingly recognising that one of the actionable genetic changes that can occur in cholangiocarcinoma can result in homologous recombination deficiency,” explains Professor Tebbutt.

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