Topics in chemotherapy, molecular-targeted therapy, and immunotherapy for newly-diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme

Abstract

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common primary brain tumor in adults, and it is associated with poor survival. The standard therapy for newly-diagnosed GBM is radiotherapy with concurrent temozolomide following maximal surgical resection. To improve the outcome of these patients, combinations of the standard therapy plus molecular-targeted agents have been tested in clinical trials. However, the addition of gefitinib to the standard therapy did not appear to improve clinical outcome, and the standard therapy plus bevacizumab showed no improvement in overall survival, although a 4-month improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) was observed. Phase II data have indicated the potential efficacy of talampanel combined with the standard therapy for patients with newly-diagnosed GBM, and these findings are awaiting validation in phase III trials. In addition, phase II trials have demonstrated that adjuvant immunotherapy is effective and tolerable for treatment of patients with GBM. In this article, we discuss topics in chemotherapy, molecular-targeted therapy, and immunotherapy for patients with newly-diagnosed GBM.

Keywords: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM); chemotherapy; immunotherapy; molecular-targeted therapy; review.