Brain Tumor Discovery Could Lead to New Treatment, Cleveland Clinic Researchers Reveal

Cleveland Clinic researchers have identified a cellular pathway that cancer stem cells use to promote tumor growth in malignant glioma, an aggressive brain tumor. The research – published in the July 8 issue of Cell – also found that existing medications block this cancer-promoting pathway and delay glioma growth in animal models, suggesting a new treatment option for these often fatal brain tumors. Malignant gliomas account for more than half of the 35,000-plus primary malignant brain tumors diagnosed each year in the United States. Unfortunately, the outlook for patients with malignant gliomas is poor. For patients with the most severe, aggressive form of malignant glioma (grade IV glioma or glioblastoma multiforme), median survival is 9 to 15 months with the best available therapies. These treatments include surgery followed by radiation therapy with the chemotherapy temozolomide followed by additional temozolomide treatment.

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