Antiangiogenic Therapy as a New Strategy in the Treatment of Endometriosis? The First Case Report

Jean Bouquet de Jolinière, Jean Bouquet de Joliniere, Arrigo Fruscalzo, F. Khomsi, Fathi Khomsi, Emanuela Stochino Loi, Floryn Cherbanyk, Jean Marc Ayoubi, Anis Féki, Anis Feki
Frontiers in surgery · 2021 · vol. 8 , pp. 791686 · doi:10.3389/fsurg.2021.791686 · PMID:34938768 · PMC8685206 · W4200040379
article OA: gold CC0 ⤵ 10 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-08 ⓘ

This case report details the successful treatment of severe endometriosis with Bevacizumab, observing reduced lesion metabolic activity and altered hormonal receptor expression without adverse effects.

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Abstract

Angiogenesis plays a pivotal role in implantation and development of ectopic endometrial lesions. Thus, the potential usefulness of anti-angiogenic therapies has been speculated. Several reports describe their usefulness in animal models. Nonetheless this therapy has not been tested on humans yet. Here we report the outcome of a patient treated for a severe endometriosis with Bevacizumab (Avastin®), a monoclonal antibody directed against the vascular endothelial growth (VEGF). After a first-look laparoscopy with confirmatory biopsies was performed, three doses of Bevacizumab at 2-week intervals were administered. The therapy showed a well-tolerated profile and the prompt disappearance of the therapy-refractory chronic dysmenorrhea. A suppression of metabolic activity at the PET-scan compared to the basal one performed at diagnosis was also recorded. Furthermore, compared to the diagnostic biopsies prior the treatment, we documented a shift in the hormonal receptors profile toward a higher expression of progesterone and estrogen receptors in the endometriotic lesions.

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Condition tags

endometriosisdysmenorrhea

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Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

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