Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer
FDA-APPROVED IMMUNOTHERAPY COMBINATION TREATMENT OPTIONS FOR ADULTS WITH A CERTAIN TYPE OF OVARIAN CANCERFDA-APPROVED IMMUNOTHERAPY COMBINATION TREATMENT OPTIONS FOR ADULTS WITH A CERTAIN TYPE OF OVARIAN CANCER
IT’S TRU.
KEYTRUDA & KEYTRUDA QLEX.

Understanding KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX
KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX are FDA-approved immunotherapies. Learn how they work with your immune system.
What to know about side effects. Consult your doctor right away if you experience any.
Looking for information on what to expect while taking KEYTRUDA or KEYTRUDA QLEX? Explore resources and find local support.
Treatment overview for KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX
KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX are prescription medicines used to treat a kind of cancer called ovarian cancer.
Each may be used in adults with the chemotherapy medicine paclitaxel, with or without the medicine bevacizumabThis medicine is thought to work by preventing the growth of new blood vessels, which may then prevent tumor growth., when your ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer:
- is resistant to chemotherapy that contains platinum, and
- tests positive for “PD-L1,” and
- you have received 1 or 2 types of treatment.
It is not known if KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX are safe and effective for this use in children.
PD-L1 = programmed death ligand 1.
What does “platinum-resistant” mean?
Platinum-resistant ovarian cancer is ovarian cancer that returns or progresses within 6 months of the last dose of platinum-containing chemotherapy.
KEYTRUDA or KEYTRUDA QLEX may be part of your treatment plan
No one is prepared to hear the word cancer. Learning more about your diagnosis and treatment can make a difference. The information below can help you understand how your treatment works. Remember, you have a voice in your care.
KEYTRUDA or KEYTRUDA QLEX with chemotherapy helps fight cancer cells
KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX are a type of therapy called immunotherapy. Immunotherapy is different from chemotherapy. Instead of attacking cancer cells directly, immunotherapy helps your immune system do what it is designed to do: find and fight cancer cells. KEYTRUDA and KEYTRUDA QLEX can cause your immune system to attack normal organs and tissues in any area of your body and can affect the way they work. These problems can sometimes become severe or life-threatening and can lead to death. You can have more than one of these problems at the same time. These problems may happen anytime during treatment or even after your treatment has ended.
Chemotherapy uses a drug to attack and kill quickly growing cells directly. Chemotherapy can be used in combination with other drugs, such as immunotherapy, to treat cancer. Chemotherapy may also damage normal quickly growing cells, such as hair and blood cells.
Bevacizumab works differently than chemotherapy. This medicine is thought to work by preventing the growth of new blood vessels, which may then block tumor growth and development. You may receive treatment with or without bevacizumab based on your doctor’s assessment. You and your doctor will decide if bevacizumab is a part of your treatment.
Understanding the need for biomarker testing
Biomarker testing for PD-L1 may help determine your treatment options
Discover what PD-L1 is and how testing for this biomarker could help determine if KEYTRUDA or KEYTRUDA QLEX may fit into your ovarian cancer treatment plan.
PD-L1 = programmed death ligand 1.
Clinical Trial Results
Based on a KEYTRUDA QLEX study, the results were similar to KEYTRUDA
The effectiveness of KEYTRUDA QLEX for its approved uses has been shown on data from clinical trials. In one of these trials, patients with a different type of cancer* received either KEYTRUDA QLEX or KEYTRUDA. This study showed these groups had similar amounts of medicine in their blood, with no notable differences in how well the medicines worked or in their safety. The effectiveness of KEYTRUDA QLEX is also based on clinical trials of KEYTRUDA for each of the approved uses.
*Advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
KEYTRUDA + combination therapy (paclitaxel, with or without the medicine bevacizumabThis medicine is thought to work by preventing the growth of new blood vessels, which may then prevent tumor growth.) may help certain people with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer reduce the risk of their ovarian cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse compared to placebo + combination therapy
A total of 643 people with ovarian cancer (epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal carcinoma) who had previously been treated with platinum-containing chemotherapy, but whose therapy did not work or was no longer working, and who had already received one or two types of treatment for ovarian cancer, were enrolled in a clinical trial.
- Among the 643 people in the trial, 466 had tumors test positive for the biomarker PD-L1 with a combined positive score (CPS) greater than or equal to 1 (CPS ≥1).
- Among those 466, 234 people received KEYTRUDA 400 mg every 6 weeks with combination therapy, and 232 people received placebo every 6 weeks with combination therapy.
- The chemotherapy medicine used in this trial was paclitaxel.
PD-L1 = programmed death ligand 1.
Placebo = an inactive treatment given instead of an active treatment.
KEYTRUDA + combination therapy reduced the risk of cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse by 28% compared to placebo + combination therapy
Half of people who received KEYTRUDA with combination therapy were alive without their cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse at 8.3 months, compared to 7.2 months for people who received placebo with combination therapy. Cancer did not progress in 31% (72 out of 234) of people who received KEYTRUDA with combination therapy compared to 22% (52 out of 232) of people who received placebo with combination therapy.
More people lived longer
*Paclitaxel, with or without bevacizumab
Understanding different types of results
There’s a lot to learn about your diagnosis. Your doctor may use several terms to talk about treatment goals, and it’s important you understand them.
Time without the cancer spreading, growing, or getting worse
Your doctor may measure the amount of time the cancer is not getting worse or spreading. This is called progression-free survival (PFS).
Living longer
One way your doctor may determine which medicine to choose is overall survival (OS). This is a measurement of time from the start of treatment and measures the length of time a person is alive.