Both are PARP inhibitors. Here is how Lynparza and Zejula compare on class, mechanism, dosing, approval and supply.
Lynparza is a poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor indicated: Ovarian cancer • for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline or somatic BRCA -mutated advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. Select patients for therapy based on an FDA-approved companion diagnostic for Lynparza. ( 1.1 , 2.1 ) • in combination with bevacizumab for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy and whose cancer is associated with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD)-positive status defined by either: • a deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA mutation, and/or • genomic i…
ZEJULA is a poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor indicated: • for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy and whose cancer is associated with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD)-positive status defined by either: o a deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA mutation, and/or o genomic instability. Select patients for therapy based on an FDA‑authorized companion diagnostic for ZEJULA. ( 1.1 , 2.1 ) • for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA -mutated recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy. Select patients for therapy based on an FDA‑authoriz…
12.1 Mechanism of Action Olaparib is an inhibitor of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) enzymes, including PARP1, PARP2, and PARP3. PARP enzymes are involved in normal cellular functions, such as DNA transcription and DNA repair. Olaparib has been shown to inhibit growth of select tumor cell lines in vitro and decrease tumor growth in mouse xenograft models of human cancer, both as monotherapy or following platinum-based chemotherapy. Increased cytotoxicity and anti-tumor activity following treatment with olaparib were noted in cell lines and mouse tumor models with deficiencies in BRCA1/2 , ATM , or other genes involved in the homologous recombination repair (HRR) of DNA damage and correl…
12.1 Mechanism of Action Niraparib is an inhibitor of PARP enzymes, including PARP-1 and PARP-2, that play a role in DNA repair. In vitro studies have shown that niraparib-induced cytotoxicity may involve inhibition of PARP enzymatic activity and increased formation of PARP-DNA complexes resulting in DNA damage, apoptosis, and cell death. Increased niraparib‑induced cytotoxicity was observed in tumor cell lines with or without deficiencies in BRCA1/2 . Niraparib decreased tumor growth in mouse xenograft models of human cancer cell lines with deficiencies in BRCA1/2 and in human patient-derived xenograft tumor models with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) that had either mutated or w…
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Plain-English summaries and drug-class explainers are written and reviewed by the Priya Life Science editorial team, led by Sreepriya Prasannan (MSc Digital Transformation of Life Sciences (Innopharma Education / Griffith College); MSc & BSc Botany). Data is retrieved automatically from the sources above and cross-checked with AI-assisted verification (Anthropic's Claude) — brand and generic names are matched against the exact FDA product record so that a combination product or a different formulation cannot be mistaken for the drug on this page. An editor reviews the result before publication. We describe this in full in our editorial standards and corrections policy. The FDA data on this page was last retrieved on 6 Aug 2026.