Clinical trial promises an alternative to chemotherapy, in the form of pills. Researchers found that combining the two drugs olaparib and cediranib can offer similar cancer cell-killing effects as chemotherapy in recurrent ovarian cancer patients, the Medical Daily reported.

Researchers say that four out of five women with severe ovarian cancer experience relapses. When the cancer comes back, it's likely to spread to other parts of the body, making it more difficult to treat with chemotherapy. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ovarian cancer is the eighth most common cancer, affecting three percent of women with cancer. When it's detected early, treatment tends to be successful.

Olaparib inhibits the enzyme Poly ADP-Ribose polymerase (PARP), which repairs DNA damage in cells, and thus helps to kill cancer cells. The second drug, cediranib, hinders the growth of blood vessels in a tumor. As a result, the cancer loses the nutrients and oxygen it needs to survive.

The trial involved 90 women with aggressive ovarian cancer that had returned after they underwent chemotherapy. Women were selected randomly to take the olaparib alone or as a combination with cediranib, according to a press release. The results showed that tumors shrank 80 percent more in participants who used the combination treatment, compared to 48 percent in participants who only received olaparib. Five of the patients using the combination of drugs experienced total remission, compared to two patients who used only olaparib.