Cisplatin plus paclitaxel chemotherapy with or without bevacizumab in postmenopausal women with previously untreated advanced cervical cancer: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to assess the survival outcomes of cisplatin-paclitaxel chemotherapy plus bevacizumab (CPB) versus cisplatin-paclitaxel chemotherapy alone (CPA) in postmenopausal women with previously untreated advanced cervical cancer (CC). METHODS: Consecutive postmenopausal women who experienced CPB or CPA were identified retrospectively from our medical centre during 2015–2019. Follow-up visits occurred 1 and 3 months after starting CPB or CPA. Afterwards, this assessment was conducted every 3 months for 1 year and then yearly thereafter. The primary endpoints were overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS); secondary endpoints were the frequency and severity of adverse events (AEs). RESULTS: Two hundred forty-six postmenopausal women were included (CPB, n = 124; CPA, n = 122). The median follow-up for the entire cohort was 24 months (range, 2–32). At the final follow-up, a significant difference was detected in terms of median OS (16.4 months [95% CI, 15.3–17.1] for CPB vs. 12.3 months [95% CI, 10.2–13.5] for CPA; hazard ratio (HR) 0.69, 95% CI, 0.49–0.99; p = 0.001), and the median PFS was longer in the CPB group than in the CPA group (9.2 months [95% CI, 8.3–10.7] vs. 7.9 months (95% CI, 6.1–8.6) (HR 0.62, 95% CI, 0.47–0.82; p < 0.001). There were significant differences in the number of AEs between the groups (hypertension grade ≥ 2 [p < 0.001], neutropenia grade ≥ 4 [p < 0.001], and thrombosis/embolism grade ≥ 3 [p = 0.030]). CONCLUSIONS: Among postmenopausal women with previously untreated advanced CC, those who received CPB experienced superior survival benefits compared to those who received CPA. The safety profile for CPB was controllable despite the long duration of CPB use.