On Thursday, a new cancer treatment was approved for patients in Norway for a limited time. Experts call it personalized medicine at its very best.
According to VG, the new treatment, the drug Lynparza (olaparib), has shown a 70 percent lower risk of relapse or death in a test group than in those receiving placebo. The cancer treatment is approved in Europe and the US and was approved on Thursday in Norway for a limited time.
This is the biggest breakthrough in gynecological cancer in many years and the largest that has occurred in cancer treatment since immunotherapy. There is great potential for a cure, says Professor Line Bjørge at the University of Bergen.
The treatment is aimed at patients with the inherited gene defect BRCA mutation, with a high risk of developing ovarian cancer and cancer at a younger age. These patients have an average age of 52 years.
According to calculations, the medicine should be relevant for 30-40 patients in Norway. Bjørge says there is hope that long-term survival for the patient group can be increased from the current 20 percent to 50 percent.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
