The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has funded a pan‑India clinical trial titled the Intermittent PARP Inhibitor Regimen in Ovarian Cancer (IPIROC) to assess a cost‑effective dosing strategy of the PARP inhibitor rucaparib in ovarian cancer patients.
The study will evaluate whether an intermittent, twice‑weekly dosing schedule can reduce treatment side effects and overall costs while maintaining clinical efficacy, addressing barriers to access for high‑cost targeted cancer therapies across diverse settings in India and select international sites.
The IPIROC trial has been developed through research efforts by the Kolkata Gynaecological Oncology Trials and Translational Research Group (KOLGOTRG) and is facilitated by Suraksha Clinic and Diagnostics Limited, which is providing laboratory infrastructure, biobanking, and advanced biomarker testing. Eligible patients enrolled in the study will receive free access to the costly anti‑cancer drug as part of the trial framework.
PARP inhibitors like rucaparib are targeted therapies used in cancers associated with BRCA mutations or homologous recombination deficiency, particularly ovarian and breast cancers, but their high price and treatment‑related toxicities have limited long‑term use in many low‑resource settings. The IPIROC design seeks to identify an optimized dosing regimen that could make cutting‑edge therapy more affordable and tolerable for patients.
The launch of the IPIROC study coincides with recognition of global inequities in access to expensive cancer drugs and clinical trials, underscored by The Every Woman Study – Low and Low‑Middle‑Income Country Edition published in The Lancet, in which India participated through KOLGOTRG.
The trial was officially inaugurated at the 8th annual meeting of KOLGOTRG, attracting leading global and Indian experts in women’s cancers, including representatives from the Gynaecological Cancer Intergroup (GCIG) and senior faculty from institutions such as AIIMS, Tata Memorial Hospital, SGPGI, and KGMU. KOLGOTRG is the only research group from India and South Asia that is a member of GCIG, a global consortium for gynaecological cancer research.
The event highlighted the role of collaborations between academic, industry, and government stakeholders in advancing affordable cancer research in India.
