Updates on systemic therapy for cervical cancer

Cervical cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world both in terms of incidence and mortality, more so important in low- and middle-income countries. Surgery and radiotherapy remain the backbone of treatment for non-metastatic cervical cancer, with significant improvement in survival provided by addition of chemotherapy to radiotherapy. Survival as well as quality of life is improved by chemotherapy in metastatic disease. Platinum-based chemotherapy with/without bevacizumab is the mainstay of treatment for metastatic disease and has shown improvement in survival. The right combinations and sequence of treatment modalities and medicines are still evolving. Data regarding the molecular and genomic biology of cervical cancer have revealed multiple potential targets for treatment, and several new agents are presently under evaluation including targeted therapies, immunotherapies and vaccines. This review discusses briefly the current standards, newer updates as well as future prospective approaches in systemic therapies for cervical cancer.