In patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma, maximal extent of surgical resection of non–contrast enhanced (NCE) tumor as well as contrast-enhanced (CE) tumor is associated with increased survival regardless of tumor subtype, according to a study recently published in JAMA Oncology.Glioblastoma subtypes are known to impact disease outcome: while the 91% of patients with glioblastoma whose tumors display isocitrate dehydrogenase gene 1 or 2 (IDH) wild-type mutations have a median survival of...
Researchers have identified glioblastoma biomarkers in extracellular vesicles that could enable a liquid biopsy, serving as a more efficient and less invasive means of detecting and subtyping this cancer.The most aggressive type of brain tumor, glioblastoma has a poor survival rate and limited treatment options. While it can currently be diagnosed through tumor biopsies, this method can be time consuming, invasive, and painful. There is a need to develop more effective options for detecting glio...
One of the significant contributors to glioblastoma, a cancer of the brain and one of the most aggressive malignancies, tumor-associated macrophages have great potential as therapeutic targets; however, targeting these cells has not been effective, in part due to a limited understanding of the reasons behind their behavior. Researchers seeking to better understand this behavior have now discovered that tumor-associated macrophages are composed of two cell types: brain-resident microglia and bone...
Children with central nervous system (CNS) tumors have good prognoses; 75% will live at least five years after diagnosis. Unfortunately, a recent study has shown that these survivors experience neuropsychological problems and lower socioeconomic status later in life compared with their healthy peers.For this study, published in Cancer, the researchers analyzed data on 181 adult survivors of pediatric low-grade gliomas from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study and compared them with a group of 105...
Electrosurgical resection, a common neurosurgery technique done with an electric knife or diathermy blade, produces surgical smoke, called diathermy smoke, from the burning of tissue during the procedure. Researchers in Finland have developed a device that can identify cancerous brain tissue based on properties of the diathermy smoke. This device could enable a surgeon to more quickly and accurately identify malignant tissue during brain cancer surgery in order to ensure that all parts...