Receiving maintenance treatment of a drug could reduce the risk of disease progression or death among the overall population of patients suffering from ovarian cancer by 68 percent, according to the results of a clinical trial.

In the Phase-III clinical trial for a new capsule developed by Zai Lab, a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Shanghai, the median progression-free survival term for ovarian cancer patients receiving the therapy was 18.3 months, much longer than the 5.4 months for the control group.

Professor Wu Xiaohua, director of the gynecological tumor department at the Shanghai Cancer Center Affiliated with Fudan University, who led the randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled clinical trial, published the results at the ongoing annual convention of the European Society for Medical Oncology on Saturday.

A total of 265 patients participated in the clinical trial that was conducted at more than 30 oncology hospitals in the country.

Ovarian cancer is a major health threat to women. Doctors said that it is the tumor with the highest mortality rate for women. It also has a high reoccurrence rate after standard first-line chemotherapy.

Wu said data from the clinical trial may provide a reference for standardized maintenance treatment for ovarian cancer patients in China in the future.

"This potential new drug originated from Shanghai is expected to impose significant influence to the clinical treatment of ovarian cancer in China and beyond," he said.