A high-throughput image-based small-molecule screen identified that various histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors, including FDA-approved panobinostat (FARYDAK) and romidepsin (ISTODAX), epigenetically abrogated PAX8 expression and efficaciously suppressed xenografts progression, and therefore, represent promising repurposing opportunities to treat patients affected by epithelial ovarian cancer and potentially other human malignancies driven by lineage-survival oncogenes. The gene discussed is HDAC9; the disease is ovarian carcinoma.